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- Welcome to Independent Lens.
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I'm Pete Schwaba, host of PBS
Wisconsin's Director's Cut.
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Creationism versus evolution:
it's an age-old debate.
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And tonight, we meet a father
and daughter
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who are on opposite sides
of this polarizing spectrum.
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The daughter bases her beliefs
in scientific fact.
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The father is a staunch
creationism believer
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and still believes fossils
are a result of Noah's ark.
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In tonight's documentary,
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we will watch this father
and daughter try to connect
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despite their differences
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in a film appropriately titled
Flood.
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Flood is as much about family,
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specifically
fathers and daughters,
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as it is about science
and where humanity comes from.
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Daughter Katy Scoggin is also
the director of Flood.
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Her opinions about the creation
of the universe
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and the faith she'd been taught
all changed
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after she took an
evolution class in college.
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She tells viewers one morning
she woke up
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with a new set of beliefs
after realizing that the flood
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and her father's understanding
of the world
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was scientifically impossible.
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Adding another layer
to the narrative
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is that her father, Marvin,
is a bit of a complex character.
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He is an elementary school
science teacher,
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popular with students,
kind-hearted,
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and has a good sense of humor.
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But when it comes to his
religious beliefs,
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he is argumentative, stubborn,
and talks with conviction.
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Caught in the middle of this
existential family dynamic
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is Katy's mom, Peggy.
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Peggy's views were more similar
to Marvin's,
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but have changed over the years
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to the point where
she is much more moderate.
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When the film starts,
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we learned that there was a long
drought between conversations
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or any words at all
between Katy and Marvin.
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In the film,
Marvin has just retired,
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and the family is moving
to Virginia
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from California's inland empire,
where Katy grew up.
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As you will see, a road trip
across America
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is the perfect time
for discussions
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about life and differences,
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especially when they stop
at a symbolic oasis
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like Scott City, Kansas.
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The area was once covered
by the ocean
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and is currently teeming with
fossils from the Cretaceous era.
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The director talks
to fossil hunters on camera,
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who are drawn to the area
in search of history.
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They also encourage Katy
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to form a tentative relationship
with Marvin.
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Katy is also a reluctant actor
in the film
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and doesn't make an appearance
until later in the movie.
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She does narrate the film,
however,
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her voice lending conviction
and authenticity
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to her experiences and beliefs,
and those of her father.
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Scoggin uses archival footage
from home movies
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and animated videos she saw
about Noah's ark and the flood
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while attending
her evangelical school
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to help give insight
into her home life
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and religious upbringing.
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This is Katy's feature film
documentary directorial debut.
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And she is off to a good start,
as Flood won a Special Mention
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at the International Documentary
Film Festival in Amsterdam.
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There is no way
around conversation,
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awkward or intimate
as it may be,
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on a cross-country road trip.
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But Katy Scoggin navigates
discomfort brilliantly.
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Her film has been called
a prescription
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for our divisive age.
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Flood starts now
on PBS Wisconsin,
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your home for independent film.