Nuclear Family

synopsis

The film opens with Travis Wilkerson's childhood memories shaped by the Cold War and his mother's obsession with the atomic bomb. Having lived in constant fear of a nuclear holocaust, he would often be haunted by nightmares. After Donald Trump's electoral victory, the nightmares came back. In an effort to understand the root cause of his neuroses, the filmmaker embarks on a therapeutic road trip across the United States. He’s joined by his daughters and his wife, who is also the co-creator of this documentary. Together, they visit missile launch facilities known as “nuclear silos” and other places linked to the annihilation of indigenous peoples. Their family trip becomes the underlying basis for the pervasive criticism of a national ideology that’s founded on mass destruction and raising fears.

“The film is a story of our land — even though it never belonged to us personally —, our family, but also of all the violence against the indigenous people, without which we wouldn't be living there today.” — Erin Wilkerson

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Source: https://www.melodieundrhythmus.com/mr-2-2022/strahlende-zukunft/

biography

Travis Wilkerson (* 1969) skates the edge between documentary, fiction, and performance. His politically engaged films An Injury to One (2003) and Did You Wonder Who Fired the Gun? (2017) were shown at Sundance, Toronto, and Locarno film festivals. Throughout his filmmaking career, he has worked closely with visual artist Erin Wilkerson (* 1982). In 2009, they founded the Creative Agitation art collective together.

more about film

director:	Travis Wilkerson, Erin Wilkerson
cast:	Erin Wilkerson, Travis Wilkerson, Matilda Wilkerson, Dalton Wilkerson, Adva Wilkerson
producer:	Travis Wilkerson, Erin Wilkerson
script:	Travis Wilkerson, Erin Wilkerson

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