Endz of the World - artist film

“ENDZ OF THE WORLD” – A Critical Examination of Industrial Legacy and Emergent Futures

“Endz of the World” is an artist film that undertakes a serious, contemplative examination of the Black Country, a region profoundly shaped by the Industrial Revolution and its enduring global impact. This moving image work thoughtfully intertwines personal narratives, deep dives into colonial history, and reflections on environmental consequences, offering a nuanced critique of industrial progress and its multifaceted legacies. It stands as a vital companion piece to my print series, conceptually aligning with the photopolymer etching process which shares techniques with photolithography, the very method used to create silicon chips.

The film confronts the complexities of the Anthropocene by illuminating how the Black Country, as the birthplace of industrial innovation, inadvertently laid a template for resource extraction and technological control that continues to resonate today. This critical perspective explores the historical subjugation of people and land, recognising these as foundational to modern society and directly connecting to contemporary environmental challenges. It’s a profound meditation on how past innovations and structures of exploitation anticipate our near future, particularly concerning rapid technological advancements and the insights from fields like AI-2027.

The visual and narrative fabric of "Endz of the World" is woven from extensive research and creative synthesis. It draws significantly from the poignant artistic visions of figures like Arthur Lockwood, Edwin Butler Bayliss, and the evocative social documentation of Nick Hedges, alongside older historical works and local archives. These diverse sources, coupled with personal stories I have carefully collected and input into a discrete dataset, contribute to a unique visual and conceptual language that elevates unseen narratives. Generative AI tools such as Exactly AI and Luma AI are employed to recontextualise historical assets, creating a compelling dialogue between human history and emergent intelligence, further underscoring how past innovations and structures of exploitation continue to shape the trajectory of new technology.

Project Details:

  • Title: Endz of the World

  • Medium: Moving Image

  • Material: Digital file

  • Duration: 7 mins

  • Timestamped: Summer 2024

  • Copyright: Billy Dosanjh

Acknowledgements:

This ambitious project was realized through the invaluable contributions and support of Wolverhampton Art Gallery, UAL team, the estates of Edwin Butler Bayliss, Arthur Lockwood and Harry Ecclestone, and includes content from MACE & BBC archives, and the personal collection of Alan Warr and Ed Isaacs.