Productions

This accession consists of audiovisual elements created during the production of "The Sea: A Quest for Our Future;" "Coral Reefs: New Discoveries, New Resources;" "Coral Reefs: How to Make Use of 400 Million Years of Evolution;" "Coral Reefs: Understanding Their Passage Through Time;" "Blue Planet;" "Coral Reefs and the Discovery of New Resources on a Blue Planet;" "Tides of Maine;" other films associated with the National Museum of Natural History (NMNH), Life in the Sea Hall; and a film produced for the St. Louis Zoological Park about coral reefs. Much of the footage for these films was shot between 1980 and 1983 and was often used in multiple productions. Much of the footage was shot by Karen Loveland, Producer, Smithsonian Productions and its predecessor units, during NMNH research trips to the Caribbean and Maine on the ship, Marsys Resolute. Additional footage, also shot by Loveland, was taken in the NMNH laboratories and exhibits. Many of the films feature Walter H. Adey, NMNH, Department of Botany, Curator/Research Scientist, or were narrated by Adey. "The Sea: A Quest for Our Future" is a 60 minute film produced in 1984 and broadcast by PBS. It is a documentary on the complex ecosystems of tropical coral reefs filmed in the Virgin Islands, the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos Islands, and Belize, and it focuses primarily on research projects conducted by the NMNH Marine Systems Laboratory. The film won several awards including the 1984 Best Nature Production Award from the International TV Movie Festival; a second-place award at the 1985 National Educational Film Festival; and a 1986 Gold Medal and Diploma of the International Scientific Festival. "Coral Reefs: New Discoveries, New Resources" is a 30-minute version of "The Sea." It was produced in 1985 and distributed for educational purposes. "Coral Reefs: How to Make Use of 400 Million Years of Evolution" was produced in approximately 1981 and accompanied the first live coral reef exhibition at NMNH. "Coral Reefs: Understanding Their Passage Through Time" (11:30) replaced "How to Make Use of 400 Million Years" in the live coral reef exhibition at NMNH in approximately 1985. "Blue Planet" is a 15 minute film produced in 1985 to accompany the NMNH exhibition "Exploring Marine Ecosystems." The film focuses on work performed in the Marine Systems Laboratory and also compares and contrasts the Maine coast with a tropical coral reef. Both ecosystems were reproduced in the exhibition. "Coral Reefs and the Discovery of New Resources on a Blue Planet" is a 28 minute film produced in 1985. It chronicles the odyssey of a dozen NMNH scientists aboard the Marsys Resolute as they explore the ecology of coral reefs in the Caribbean. The expedition seeks to discover how coral reefs are able to flourish in notoriously nutrient-poor waters. The film was produced by Karen Loveland, directed by Karen Loveland and Robert Pierce, and narrated by Paul Anthony. The film was a Blue Ribbon winner at the American Film Festival. "Tides of Maine" is a 30-minute radio program produced in approximately 1994. It is a recording of a ship's log during a voyage from Norfolk, Virginia to the Gulf of Maine with Walter H. Adey and his crew. This audio documentary records life aboard the Marsys Resolute and chart's Adey's stories as a seafaring scientist. Adey tracks and explains plant and animal specimens encountered during the trip.