Building Bombs Directed by Mark Mori, Susan J. Robinson, 1991

Offering rare archival footage and a deceptively upbeat atmosphere, this Oscar-nominated film delves into the lives of a community gripped by the ultimate weapon of mass destruction — the hydrogen bomb. Pastoral Aiken, South Carolina is home to the Savannah River Plant, the epicenter of America’s top secret atomic bomb-making apparatus. Within this nuclear company town, directors Mark Mori and Susan J. Robinson unlock a treasure trove of feelings for the bomb — ambivalence, resignation, anger, fear, and celebration — while blowing open a cover-up of massive radioactive waste dumping carried out under the shroud of national security.

Profiling a diverse cast of outspoken community members, from a physicist-turned-peace-activist, a politician who speechifies on the good jobs created by the plant, and a worker whose body courses with radioactive particles, BUILDING BOMBS artfully grapples with the profound realities of a world filled with nukes by listening closely to those who must live day-to-day in the shadow of the H-bomb.

Bonus Features

Filmmaker Interviews; PBS Censorship Controversy; Michael Stipe Speaks Out; Rare DOE/Atomic Energy Commission Films; Photo Gallery; Theatrical Trailer; Filmmaker Biographies