DOCUTAH @ The Electric presents "The Day After Trinity"

Dixie State University and DOCUTAH@TheELECTRIC brings a film to the St. George community which strikes a significant chord in the history of the desert Southwest. “The Day After Trinity: J. Robert Oppenheimer and the Atomic Bomb is a haunting journey through the dawn of the nuclear age, an incisive history of humanity's most dubious achievement and the man behind it--J. Robert Oppenheimer, the principal architect of the atomic bomb.” The film will be screened at the historic Electric Theater on June 24th and hosted by Director Jon Else and is presented where the nuclear age began and the very first civilians, American citizens, were unknowingly exposed to the fallout downwind.

The Amazon review of the film comments, “Featuring archival footage and commentary from scientists and soldiers directly involved with the Manhattan Project, this gripping film is a fascinating look at the scope and power of the Nuclear Age.”

The Downwinders, as those in the path of the radiation fallout from the testing came to be known, were exposed to radioactive ash which fell like snow and which blew over a wide swath of the desert Southwest in Utah, Arizona, New Mexico and Nevada. Their lives and the lives of their descendants were forever changed. For those affected at the time by the above ground testing, which at best was careless and at worst uncaring for the lives of those in the path of the radiation and for those descendants still suffering the consequences, this film will evoke strong emotions which have not been diminished by time.

"’I have become death,’ said Oppenheimer when he witnessed the terrible power of the atomic bomb. This Oscar-nominated documentary has lessons for the world in which we find ourselves facing the dangers of terrorism, tribalism and, perhaps, nuclear proliferation,” said Phil Tuckett, executive director of DOCUTAH.

“My mother was brave enough to speak out against the above ground atomic testing at a time when our government actually encouraged school children to go outside and watch the amazing mushroom clouds as they rose up from the desert floor and dissipated their deadly winds across our neighborhoods,” noted Michelle Thomas, St. George resident, whose family was directly impacted by the testing and represented the United States at Vienna Nuclear Conference in 2014.

According to an article published in 2014, Michelle, a child of the Cold War era, said she experienced firsthand the disastrous health effects brought on by living in the fallout zone of the Atomic Energy Commission’s testing, and she has worked for decades to educate the community, both at home and abroad, by sharing the heart-wrenching and often staggering tales of those who lived under the mushroom clouds – including her own.

Upcoming DOCUTAH@TheELECTRIC Films

July 29: The Electric Theater, St. George, 7 PM

“The Great American Cowboy”

Directed by Kieth Merrill, this Oscar-winning film tells the exciting true story of this vanishing American and his special kind of freedom. Screenings hosted by Kieth Merrill

August 26: The Electric Theater, St. George, 7 PM

“The Champions”

Director/Producer Darcy Dennett’s film tells the inspirational story about the pit bulls rescued from the brutal fighting ring of former Atlanta Falcon’s star quarterback Michael Vick, and those who risked it all to save them. This uplifting documentary takes us on a journey about much more than just dogs—about prejudice, being misunderstood, the power of resilience, and the significance of the relationship we as humans have with animals.

DOCUTAH International Documentary Film Festival

September 6 – 10, 2016

Enlighten, Entertain, and Envision the world through documentary film