The Encirclement

Erik Sween is an independent filmmaker who focuses his work on the Rocky Flats nuclear weapons plant as well as the activism directed at it before the plant was closed down. His first film was titled On the Track and his latest film is titled The Encirclement, which will be screened on Friday, March 1st as a part of the Boulder international film festival.

The 1980’s were the middle of the nuclear arms race, and people in Denver and Boulder weren’t completely happy having a nuclear weapons site in their backyard. This lead to protests and activism, and in 1983 the activists tried something different. They linked themselves together hand in hand in a 17 mile loop around the perimeter of the testing site. This event was the foundation for Sween’s latest film.

Sween spoke to KGNU’s Elena Klaver. “I think there’s something that’s really inspiring about this protest, and something that speaks to our current situation in terms of, can people be politically active, can they really take a stand to what’s going on. So I think there’s something kind of iconic, universal about the imagery that went with the encirclement.”

Encirclement will be screened at 10am on Friday, March 1st at the First Presbyterian Church in Boulder as part of the Boulder International Film Festival ahead of the longer film Prosecuting Evil.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download