Script
Art Scene
“I want you to act as if the house is on fire, because it is” (Greta Thunberg). Climate change is a major issue rising in the twenty first century. Become more prevalent, and harder to combat as time goes by. As technology advances, and becomes more dependent, more and more harm is done to the climate, and the biggest problem which is faced, is the carelessness of people towards this issue. In Alfanso Kuran’s “Children of Men” , the issue of climate change is present all along the film in many scenes such as the opening scene where the audience views the yellow sky and the pollution, and the trash, and feels hopelessness. This leads us to the question of, in what ways does the carelessness of the upper class affect the climate? The “Ark of the Arts” scene portrays this issue beautifly as it gives the audience a perspective on how the upper class function on a daily basis, and how their ideologies affect the climate in an extremely negative way.
In the “Ark of the Arts” scene, as Theo enters the mansion to meet Nigel, which he needs help from, they stand and talk next to a window. Outside the window there is a balloon pig, which is flying high above them, and above the power plant, which is in a visible region. The way in which Nigel functions leads the audience to believe that the carelessness of the upper class definitely impacts the climate in a negative way. As Theo is talking with the man, Theo states to him “you kill me, a hundred years from now there won’t be one sad fuck to look at this, what keeps you going”. Theo was referencing the art and the building which Nigel owns, and how Nigel just keeps on living happily. Nigel responds to Theo’s question by stating “ you know what it is Theo? I just don’t think about it”. The way in which Nigel acts and the things which he states lead the audience to believe that he doesn’t care. The world which they live in is a world filled with pollution, and the lives of people are very negative, but the upper class is living a careless life, with no responsibilities or actions being taken to prevent climate issues from worsening. The actions of the upper class definitely impact the climate in a negative way. This is seen in the “Ark of the Arts”, specifically in the subscene when the pig is visible from afar region. The pig symbolizes hopelessness, because animals are fertile, and their population is growing whereas the population of mankind is rapidly decreasing. This releases a sense of fear and anger in the audience because the upper class have the most capability to take action against this major issue, but they are not, and they do not care, as seen with Nigel.
Fadhalah Al-Sulaiti-Learners Portfolio English 