The film
STORY
Life on Wheels tells the compelling story of a culture on the verge of a revolution that will transform our economy, our environment, and the rhythms of our everyday lives. In this feature-length documentary, a collection of mobility mavens, technologists, and dreamers takes viewers on a journey through the highways, back alleys, and futurescapes of transportation – how we get from here to there. Life on Wheels addresses the promises, dangers, and absurdities of our current auto-centric transportation system and explores new possibilities and stories of change. The subject of mobility has vast implications. It touches our core values of freedom, health, safety, and happiness. It hits our pocketbooks and impacts how we spend our time and energy. It literally shapes our landscapes, cities, and social conditions. The path we choose will have profound implications for us and for future generations.
What the experts say...
“Over a million people in the world die every year and three times that many are injured or maimed. Or two people die every minute of the day in an automobile. In the US alone, 40 000 people die every year. It’s like having a major train crash every other day”
“What we have today is something we didn’t anticipate, which is the paving over the world for tools that double glaze the planet”
“The two opposing autonomous vehicle projections are that most households will retain at least one personal vehicle and that almost no-one will bother to own one because it will be so cheap and convenient to dial-a-robocab. While the on-demand scenario occurs to many thought-leaders as preferable, this is neither guaranteed to occur, nor has it been determined how such fleets might be governed to achieve a high level of optimization with respect to time, energy and fleet size.”
“In the US Today it costs about nine thousand dollars a year to operate your own car. It’s 18% of your household income yet it’s only used 5% of the time.”
“My friend moved to NYC. He said I’m keeping my car no matter what. A week later he sold it. It’s about a personal mind-shift mixed with the improving technologies and or infrastructure”
“Small particles from vehicle emissions called “Soot” cause 25,000 premature mortalities every year. ”
“In many congested cities an average motorist will commute about 75 minutes each workday. About 30 of these minutes, are lost to congestion. Assuming a five-day work week, after 32 years, a motorist will have spent two years standing in traffic.”
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David and Hi-Jin Hodge have created films and video installations for a variety of clients and artistic exhibitions for museums around the world. Their pieces typically blend editorial materials and innovative uses of technology to explore complex human and social questions. Above all, they create cohesive work that identifies foundational principles and expands on them through multiple viewpoints.