Documentary Featuring Sea Bright, New Jersey Future Is Ocean Film Festival Finalist

October 20th, 2016 by David Kutner

Barrier island communities, particularly vulnerable to the risk of flood inundation, are on the front line of impact along the New Jersey coast as sea levels rise, storms become more intense and storm surges like Sandy occur more often.

How do we respond? Build a bulkhead? Gradually retreat? These are some of the difficult options that are explored in the documentary film Bad Tidings (watch the trailer here), which will be screened as a finalist at the international Blue Ocean Film Festival & Conservation Summit in St. Petersburg, Florida. The film features Sea Bright Borough, a small barrier island community of approximately 1,800 just south of Sandy Hook that sustained heavy damage from Hurricane Sandy. In the film, Sea Bright Mayor Dina Long – who has been tireless in her efforts to protect her town against future storms – agonizes over the realization that it may not be possible, and acknowledges how difficult it is to have public discussions about future projections of sea level rise and what they mean for the town. New Jersey Future Local Recovery Planning Manager Steve Nelson and Planning Manager David Kutner describe the extent of the community’s vulnerability and paint a sobering picture of its future.

The film is relevant for everyone who lives along New Jersey’s coast and anyone who visits and enjoys the amenities of the Shore.

The Blue Ocean Film Festival & Conservation Summit is a biennial event that brings hundreds of ocean leaders, filmmakers, photographers, scientists, explorers, entertainment executives and the general public to the Tampa Bay/St. Petersburg area to honor the best in ocean filmmaking, to learn more about the issues facing our oceans, and to collaborate on improving the future of our oceans.