Watermark [0] and The Anthropocene[1] are both phenomenal. In fact, in terms of cinematography, I think Watermark is the best. Manufactured Landscapes was absolutely earth-shattering in my own consideration of humans and our ecologies though.
If you find yourself liking Burtynsky may I also suggest checking out Richard Misrach and the classic book of Manfred Hamm photography, Dead Tech [2].
(We'd be remiss to leave out the contributions of Jennifer Baichwal to all three films and Nicholas de Pencier on The Anthropocene.)
Burtynsky's environmental trilogy is worth exploring in full: Manufactured Landscapes (2006), Watermark (2013), and Anthropocene: The Human Epoch (2018).
I just finished reading “The Sixth Extinction” and it’s hard not to just feel sadness at many of these pictures. The economic benefits of this rapid human development are undeniable but the impact on earth as a whole is pretty horrifying.
There's a fantastic documentary about Burtynsky's work, Manufactured Landscapes. I highly recommend it, even if you just watch the opening. https://www.edwardburtynsky.com/projects/films/manufactured-...
It's actually the first in what became a series!
Watermark [0] and The Anthropocene[1] are both phenomenal. In fact, in terms of cinematography, I think Watermark is the best. Manufactured Landscapes was absolutely earth-shattering in my own consideration of humans and our ecologies though.
If you find yourself liking Burtynsky may I also suggest checking out Richard Misrach and the classic book of Manfred Hamm photography, Dead Tech [2].
(We'd be remiss to leave out the contributions of Jennifer Baichwal to all three films and Nicholas de Pencier on The Anthropocene.)
[0] https://www.edwardburtynsky.com/projects/films/watermark
[1] https://www.edwardburtynsky.com/projects/films/anthropocene-...
[2] https://www.amazon.com/Dead-Tech-Guide-Archaeology-Tomorrow/... (Only linked to Amazon because people have posted images)
Burtynsky's environmental trilogy is worth exploring in full: Manufactured Landscapes (2006), Watermark (2013), and Anthropocene: The Human Epoch (2018).
All three available to stream on Prime Video
The whole movie is available on Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/ManufacturedLandscapes_201902
I just finished reading “The Sixth Extinction” and it’s hard not to just feel sadness at many of these pictures. The economic benefits of this rapid human development are undeniable but the impact on earth as a whole is pretty horrifying.
https://archive.ph/hTj6w
http://web.archive.org/web/20250713051005/https://www.newyor...
Link to the show at the International Center of Photography (NYC): https://www.icp.org/exhibitions/edward-burtynsky-great-accel...
Petapixel article with more photos and commentary: https://petapixel.com/2025/06/24/photographer-edward-burtyns...
Scarcely different than the world shown in WALL-E or idiocracy
The first picture must be these windmills that ruin the landscape. /s