Duck and Cover (1951)
In the National Film Registry
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9m 10s
Bert the Turtle teaches kids to duck & cover, offering simplistic hope in face of nuclear threat.
Produced by the U.S. government at the height of the Cold War, Duck and Cover (1951) employed animation and catchy music to teach children nuclear bomb safety protocols.
The film's instructional purpose is undeniable, yet its use of a cartoon turtle, Bert, as the protagonist and a jaunty song to convey a terrifying reality creates an unsettling juxtaposition. This blurring of lightheartedness and serious subject matter is a hallmark of some experimental films.
Furthermore, Duck and Cover reached a massive audience of schoolchildren, bringing unconventional animation and themes into the public consciousness. This wide-scale distribution, achieved through a non-commercial entity, echoes the ways experimental filmmakers often sought alternative exhibition methods.
Though a product of its time, Duck and Cover serves as an unexpected reminder that the boundaries of experimental film can be pushed in surprising ways, even within a government-sanctioned project.
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