The Gulf of Mexico’s oil spill documentary, produced by geography instructor Cameron Craig, is now officially in a thorough research stage, delaying its release date until further notice.

When Craig and his team returned from the Gulf Coast, he expected to release the documentary in the fall.

Craig decided to invest more time in research due to how delicate the oil spill issue is and the fact that this project is a new experience for him.

Craig said his research is about how humans struggle and adapt to sudden events like the oil spill.

He said the audience’s perception of the human struggle will change after watching the documentary, and the key to a good product will be focusing on the human element of the oil spill.

Before Eastern’s fall semester begins, Craig plans to return to the Gulf Coast area to get new information and follow-up interviews.

Craig also incorporated Kevin Jeanes and Darren Leeds to assist with the production.

Jeanes, an Eastern alumni and current meteorologist for NBC12 in Richmond Virginia, will be assisting as a producer, and Leeds, geography major, will serve as a video editor.

Zach Nugent, an Eastern graduate student, will be assistant producer, and Andrew Schubert from the Center for Academic Technology will take care of the post production.

Craig said he and his production team will analyze and assemble their interviews so the story makes sense with minimum narration.

“I want the interviews to speak for themselves,” he said.

He said the documentary will focus on residents living along the coast and how they must protect the environment to coexist.

Besides the release date, the subtitle of the documentary has changed from “Returning to Paradise: Humanity’s Will to Conquer” to “Returning to Paradise: Voices of the Human Spirit.”

Craig said he changed the subtitle to avoid confusion among the audience.

“The reason I changed the subtitle of the documentary was due to word choice,” he said. “A fellow geographer, Vince Gutowski, and I said we felt the word ‘conquer’ would paint a different picture in the viewer’s mind.”

He also said residents of the coast are thankful for him and the team for covering the oil spill.

“People along the Gulf Coast area are thankful with what we are doing, which will provide a learning opportunity for students in Illinois,” he said.

Pablo Rodriguez can be reached at 581-7942 or at [email protected].