Lionfishing
Digital video, 20 minutes, color, English, USA. 2020.
I have journeyed to the sun-drenched shores of Florida, a land of paradox. Beneath its glittering facade, a crisis unfolds, a silent war waged in the depths of its turquoise waters. The lionfish, a venomous invader, has wrought havoc upon the delicate coral reefs, a plague upon this underwater Eden. In response, a peculiar spectacle has emerged: the lionfish derby. Men and women, armed with spears and nets, descend into the abyss, their faces etched with determination and a hint of desperation.
Yet, as I delved deeper into this tale of ecological crisis, another, more sinister picture emerged. The very institutions meant to rehabilitate those in need have become entangled in a web of corruption. Rehabilitation houses, once sanctuaries of hope, now stand as gilded cages, their promises as hollow as the men who profit from them. It is a tale of two worlds colliding, the pristine ocean and the polluted heart of man. I shall expose this darkness, bringing to light the hypocrisy of a society that can rally against an invasive species while nurturing its own internal parasites.