School of Social and Political Sciences
Blueberry Soup: How Iceland changed the way we think about the world
- Eileen Jerrett, Documentary Film maker
- Thursday 5th November, 4 pm - 6 pm, B/B/002, Biology B Block
- Production team: Luke Carrol, Adam Bowers, Richard Crawshaw and Jervis Lam
Eileen Jerrett
Eileen is a documentary filmmaker, who has been on a college screening/discussion tour over the last year, presenting her film titled Blueberry Soup. The film is an extraordinary documentary about the constitutional change in Iceland following the financial crisis of 2008. This is a not-well-known-story of grassroots constitutionalism, an inspiration to the rest of the world. The film is a deeply touching account of an eclectic group of individuals reinventing democracy through the rewriting of the nation's constitution. The purpose of the tour is to initiate discussions around innovative thinking in the public/governmental sphere. Eileen began her tour at Harvard University in partnership with Lawrence Lessig (which inspired a fascinating new initiative to rewrite the New Orleans Charter). Since that screening she has been to dozens of universities across North America, screening the film with educators interested in conversations around participatory democracy and modern constitutionalism. Website: BlueberrySoupFilm.com
Interview
Film synopsis
Blueberry Soup, a feature length documentary, sits in the epicenter of one of the most exciting movements to happen in our lifetime, the Icelandic "people's movement." Jaws dropped around the world on October 9, 2008 as a small collective of bankers brought an entire nation to its knees. The policies and structures that were previously in place are no longer working and the time has come to reflect and redesign.
A societal phenomenon is taking place; after the crash (known in Icelandic as kreppa) designers and innovation specialists within Iceland saw the possibility above crisis. The general consensus saw that Iceland's economic collapse is indicative of what every nation could be facing in the near future with the radical economic instability. There is a loud cry for action over apathy. The Icelandic community is taking back power over government and demanding swift and necessary changes to save their country. This film is a deeply touching account of a group of individuals collaborating through dialog. Proving that Iceland is not a broken country but instead an intricate webbing of concerns, ideas, and ultimately creative solutions.
The constitutional committee used social media throughout the writing process to encourage feedback from the Icelandic and international community. The council included teachers, pastors, radio hosts, lawyers, artists, farmers, and activists to ensure a wide array of voices within the Icelandic community. The film follows five of the women in the constitutional assembly and their personal experience in this historic moment. The film is invited into the public forums of the constitutional assemblies formal meetings and then follows some of the council members into their private social gatherings. With only three months to write this document the group is under an immense amount of pressure to create new laws that will protect their country’s values, culture, and environment for the generations to come. If given a second chance, how does a nation rebuild?
Film Trailer: vimeo.com/72931601