If you watch one thing this weekend make time to look at ‘The Hunterston Proposal’ a short independent documentary film, made by journalist Brandon Cook, that examines the proposals for decommissioning at Hunterston. The film aims to provide a balanced overview and includes interviews with representatives of Clydeport; environmental marine specialists, decommissioning academics and supporters of the Friends of the Firth of Clyde, leaving the viewer to form their own opinion.
In an interview with the Ayrshire Daily News Brandon Cook explains how he came to make the project:
“This project, which is part of my degree, has taken about six months of research, filming and editing and it feels great to finally get it out. It is a completely independent film which cost nothing to make, other than my time. Everyone who contributed was really helpful, either by giving interviews or letting me use existing footage. Without their help, this film would have been very difficult to make, and I thank all involved. The reason I chose this subject for my degree film was that I was aware of so many heavily biased social media posts on both sides of this debate, and I wanted to bring all the arguments together and present them in an unbiased manner. What’s happening at Hunterston potentially affects a lot of people, so it’s very important that they know the facts of what’s going on there, and can make their own informed decisions.”
This is exactly the kind of high quality, evidence based discussion that the local community and members of the general public are calling out for. The Hunterston Proposal sets the benchmark.
We wish Brandon every success with his studies and future in journalism – look out for him in the future, we suspect he’s a name to watch!