Fire of Love filmmaker explores the work devotion of two volcanologists
Filmmaker Sara Dosa\u2019s childhood fascination and fear of volcanoes shaped her career. While finishing her last film \u201cThe Seer and the Unseen\u201d about an Icelandic woman fighting to save a lava field from becoming a road, she came across archival footage from Katia and Maurice Krafft, the renowned French volcanologists.\xa0\u201cThey had shot hundreds of hours of footage, and Iceland was one of their absolute favorite places, so they did have extraordinary images of volcanoes,\u201d she says.\xa0The scientist couple were killed in a pyroclastic blast at Mount Unzen in Japan in 1991. And though the documentarian doesn\u2019t remember their tragic deaths, she and her team became transfixed by the duo.\xa0\u201cOnce we learned more about them as people, both as these unique, idiosyncratic, hilarious, and philosophical individuals [who had] this extraordinary life where they chased erupting volcanoes all around the world, we thought, this is a world we want to dwell in.\u201d\xa0Dosa pieces together their imagery to make \u201cFire of Love.\u201d It is an homage to the French couple, their love for each other, and devotion and fearlessness to studying volcanoes \u2013 a job that ultimately led to their deaths. The film also explores the Kraffts\u2019 travels, writings, and lectures on the beauty and dangers of molten lava and blasts of hot gasses, and their ability to document and share their findings with a wide audience.\xa0But first, Hollywood media and tech moguls reconvene in Sun Valley Idaho this week, where large deals used to be brokered, but are now less likely.