Linnean Society of London
Thursday, March 8, 2018 at 6 pm
(a note from filmmaker John Feldman)
To celebrate International Women’s Day the Linnean Society of London hosted the London Premiere of Symbiotic Earth. Before the screening, a few of us were treated to a fantastic tour by librarian Lynda Brooks of the “vault” where Linnaeus’ manuscripts, letters, and specimens are kept. It was such a privilege to see the actual herbarium specimens and insects that Linnaeus used. And we were also shown his manuscripts and drawings.
It was an honor to have the film shown by the Linnean Society. The film was shown in a beautiful theatre in Burlington House (right next to the Royal Academy) in Picadilly. Along the walls of the theatre are portraits of Linnaeus and other famous members of the Society. Lynn Margulis was an honored Fellow of the Linnean Society, and I pointed out later that for 2.5 hours, Lynn Margulis’ (cinematic) portrait hung side by side with Darwin and Wallace’s — as is certainly appropriate.
The film was projected in front on both the left and right sides of the theatre. The audience was large, and the questions and answers afterwards were about Lynn Margulis and the film production itself. Alex Marlow, assistant editor and researcher for the film, described his process of organizing the massive amounts of archival footage that we culled through to find the moments used in the film.
We spoke for a moment about the fact that while Margulis was a socially active person who generally worked with others, she was also a stubborn and feisty individual — people are complex and there is no contradiction there.
The screening was presented by the Linnean Society of London and Peter Horton (Hummingbird Films and the Gaia’s Company).
It was a huge privilege to be with you for the premier of your film in London last week. I was captivated by the film, and although I sadly never met Lynn, I feel I have a real sense of her through your work. The explanation of the science and the context of her research has brought my understanding of the symbiotic earth into sharp focus and on a very personal level as an artist, I feel reinvigorated to re-explore it through my own work. Many congratulations on such a great achievement. With all good wishes, Sue Lansbury
