The Body Blow (2024)

Overview

Focused on the concept of ‘acceptable bodily risk’, the film explores the meaning of risk within the contexts of care, work, and health. Due to the presence of docks and heavy industries, the borough with the highest incidence of asbestos-related cancers and mesothelioma examines the bureaucratic and legal paperwork those exposed to asbestos are stuck between. Work Capability Assessments, litigation, and legal statistical measurements have become controls by which the individual can be mediated, framed by the value of their economic and domestic labour. By exploring the language permeated by the legacy of asbestos, it reflects on who can be exposed to risk and how risk can be quantified.