Re-Arranged Film Analysis Sheet

Analysis of Bridges / Tunnels

Visualisation of Existent Fish Survey

Channelsea Island Film Essay V2

The movie has been created in split scene showcasing our route thorough Google Street View by matching the relevant scenes from The Painted Boats.

"If you walk through Three Mills today, it’s clear things have evolved; on one side of the mills and the buildings there’s now green space for people to go for picnics, fishing, and to walk freely. It’s a chance for people to spend time to see what it’s about and explore the area’s history. But then again, considering all of these improvements, Three Mills Green seems a bit dull than anticipated.

 Nearby, Prescott Channel and the Three Mills Lock have also been transformed, with crystal clear water connecting new raised walkways across the water, ideal for pedestrians and cyclists alike. Yet the narrow river’s intimacy makes it still feel like as a secret. How could we do more to help people connect with the river physically, through waterside recreation, providing fewer opportunities to simply pass by?

 In contrast, Channelsea Island became and still is a green island. The Channelsea River area, part of the island, was once a hive of industries but, after the industries were stopped, the island, apart from a tall buildings-studded skyline, seemed to have been left behind by the erosion of time. A high building trend has lately been evident in many of the current city developments, the focus of which is on vertical constructions.

 But we can also see these lofty buildings as a challenge — to consider future developments, and to try to propose an alternative way of life. One option is to concentrate on living more sustainable, community-based and historically appropriate lives; in fact, I would argue, that is exactly what narrowboats and floating homes provide. Narrowboats also allow people to live by the water, reconnecting with nature at first hand, rather than surrendering themselves to artificial world of high-rise living.

 A key part of this transition is the return to the river; the waterway has always been at the very heart of the community, not only sustaining the area with trade, but trading with and boosting its industries, and a vision for life on the water – perhaps via narrowboats and floating homes – would be a celebratory return to this historical use. Why not celebrate it again, and develop a simple, sustainable, vernacular way of living that is good for the earth and for people?

 If it is to be genuinely embraced as a floating way of life, the waterways will have to be improved: locks and flow-through systems that allow access to the river to be easy and free-running, but also facilitate more people having a more regular and relaxed life on the water while making sure that the ecological health of the river remains.

 To sum up then, although much has been done, there is a great deal more to be done. It should be possible to look at the future of Channelsea Island with great optimism, building on the work done down the line, by making better use of waterways and connectivity to the river itself. Repurposing this neglected and hollowed-out stretch of land has the potential not only of honouring the river’s past, but also of offering a positive vision for its future, where people and other life are able to flourish."

Film Essay Stills Collage