Learning from Science-fiction Films: Architecture-city Resilience to Pandemics

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Ph.D. Candidate in Architecture, Department of Architecture, Faculty of Architecture & Urbanism, Imam Khomeini International University (IKIU), Qazvin, Iran

2 Associate Professor, Department of Architecture, Faculty of Architecture & Urbanism, Imam Khomeini International University (IKIU), Qazvin, Iran

3 Assistant Professor, Department of Architecture, Faculty of Architecture & Urbanism, Imam Khomeini International University (IKIU), Qazvin, Iran

Abstract

Architecture-city is a self-sufficient mixed-use vertical megastructure with advanced infrastructure capable of functioning as a city. It requires special attention to design and construction, particularly in terms of its resilience to pandemics. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, some science-fiction films had predicted pandemics and provided lessons and warnings. This study aimed to learn from science-fiction films to design a pandemic-resilient architecture-city. It conducted content analysis to reach the research aim, using Steven Soderbergh's Contagion as a case. The film was chosen because of its striking similarity to the COVID-19 pandemic. The study was conducted in three steps: transforming the visual content of the film Contagion (2011) into written text, analyzing the content of the written text, and explaining the factors affecting the architecture-city resilience to withstand pandemics. Multiple film reviews complemented the written text to ensure a comprehensive analysis. The content analysis results of the film were presented under "Thoughtful Points in Architectural Designs to Withstand Pandemics". Finally, based on these results and the architecture-city definition, the factors affecting architecture-city resilience to pandemics were discussed. Based on the content analysis of the film Contagion, key considerations in architectural designs to withstand pandemics include attention to indoor environmental quality, available urban services and facilities, and major pandemic challenges. Several factors, such as climate and building orientation, appropriate dimensions and area of spaces, access to daylight and natural ventilation, connection with nature, visual and acoustic aspects, security, materials' color and type, protecting the privacy of residents, open and semi-open spaces, and flexibility are vital in improving the quality of indoor spaces to tackle pandemics effectively. The film Contagion accentuates the significance of strengthening local centers. Designing mixed-use neighborhoods with relative self-sufficiency can increase resilience against pandemics by providing citizens easy access to work, education, shopping, health, welfare, and leisure. During pandemics, access to essential services like healthcare, medicine, food, water, and energy poses major challenges. The utilization of advanced technologies is crucial for architecture-city resilience, alongside indoor environmental quality and easy access to urban services and facilities. By incorporating advanced transportation technologies, such as MULTI elevators, architecture-city can be structured as one or multiple neighborhoods, considering its dimensions. Incorporating touch-free technologies and anti-viral materials into frequently touched surfaces can prevent viruses from spreading via fomites. Incorporating aeroponics technology for food security, utilizing renewable energy to provide power, and implementing smart technologies for social communication, teleworking, telemedicine, tele-education, and online shopping are some ways to enhance the resilience of architecture-city against pandemics. Based on the results of the present study, improving the quality of indoor environmental conditions, providing access to urban services and facilities quickly and efficiently, through the design of mixed-use and self-sufficient neighborhoods within the architecture-city, and utilizing advanced technologies of transportation, construction, agriculture, and smart systems, is essential in creating resilient architecture-cities that can withstand pandemics. The results of this study can benefit architects and decision-makers involved in designing and constructing future architecture-cities.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

پندار، هادی، رستگار ژاله، سحر و محسن‌نژاد، سارا (1401). بازتعریف راهبردهای واکنش کارکردی-فضایی شهرها دربرابر شیوع کووید-19 در ایران با تأکید بر تجربۀ شرق آسیا (چین). نشریۀ علمی باغ نظر. 19 (115)، 21-38.
علی‌الحسابی، مهران، و شیخ، ندا (1398). تبیین چالش‌های پیش‌روی شهرهای آینده با بهره‌گیری از تجارب سینمای علمی‌تخیلی. نامۀ معماری و شهرسازی، 13(28)، 51-68.
فرهنگستان ادب و زبان فارسی. (1397 الف). واژه‌ مصوب: دنیاگیر. فرهنگستان ادب و زبان فارسی. https://wiki.apll.ir/word/index.php/Pandemic
فرهنگستان ادب و زبان پارسی. (1397 ب). واژه‌ مصوب: دنیاگیری. فرهنگستان زبان و ادب فارسی. https://wiki.apll.ir/word/index.php/Pandemicity
 
Abbott, C. (2007). Cyberpunk cities: Science fiction meets urban theory. Journal of Planning Education and Research, 27(2), 122–131. https://doi.org/10.1177/0739456X07305795.
Akristiniy, V. I., & Boriskina, Y. I. (2018). Vertical Cities - The New Form of High-rise Construction Evolution. E3S Web of Conferences, 33(01041), 1-11. The Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0, 4-8 September 2017, Samara, Russia. https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/20183301041.
Ali, M. M. (2008). The Role of Tall Buildings in Sustainable Cities. The Sustainable City, 117, 345–354. https://doi.org/10.2495/SC080331.
Al-Kodmany, K. (2018). Sustainability and the 21st Century Vertical City: A Review of Design Approaches of Tall Buildings. Buildings, 8(8), 102, 1–42. https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings8080102.
Bock, T., & Hu, R. (2022). Towards Instant Availability and Full Life Cycle Resilience in Vertical Cities: Automated Deployment and Transformation of High-Rise Buildings to Mitigate Social Challenges. International Journal of High-Rise Buildings, 11(2), 75–86. https://doi.org/10.21022/IJHRB.2022.11.2.75.
Burke, L. C. (2022). Vertical Communities: An Exploration in Urban Architecture [Master’s thesis, Texas A & M University]. https://oaktrust.library.tamu.edu/handle/1969.1/196006.
Butt, A. (2018). “Endless forms, vistas and hues”: Why Architects Should Read Science Fiction. Architectural Research Quarterly, 22(2), 151–160. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1359135518000374.
Cervera, R., & Pioz, J. (2018). Bionic Science as a Tool for Innovation in Mega-Cities. In Q. M. Zaman & I. Troiani (Eds.), Transdisciplinary Urbanism and Culture: From Pedagogy to Praxis (193–212), Springer International Publishing: New York City. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-55855-4_16.
Cody, B. (2010). Hyper building city. Graz University of Technology. https://graz.elsevierpure.com/en/projects/hyper-building-city.
Collie, N. (2011). Cities of the imagination: Science fiction, urban space, and community engagement in urban planning. Futures, 43(4), 424–431. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.futures.2011.01.005.
Compton, D. M., & Schultz-Hansen, K. (2023). What’s 12 Monkeys Got to Do with It? Resilience during the COVID-19 Pandemic as a Function of Personality and Interest in Suspense-Horror. Psychology, 14(8), 1217–1249. https://doi.org/10.4236/psych.2023.148067.
Cortés, A., & Crippen, M. (2021). Phenomenology and Ecology: Art, Cities, and Cinema in the Pandemic. The Polish Journal of Aesthetics, 61(2), 27–41. https://doi.org/10.19205/61.21.2.
Daher-Nashif, S. (2021). Doctors’ Challenges During Infectious Disease Outbreaks: Medical Education Insights from Realistic Fiction Movies. Advances in Medical Education and Practice, 12, 265–272. https://doi.org/10.2147/AMEP.S297427.
Dehority, W. (2020). Infectious Disease Outbreaks, Pandemics, and Hollywood—Hope and Fear Across a Century of Cinema. JAMA, 323(19), 1878–1880. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2020.7187.
Denardo, D. (2022). Is COVID-19 Like a Zombie Apocalypse? Using Horror Films to Examine the Pandemic and Social Inequalities. Teaching Sociology, 50(4), 322–330. https://doi.org/10.1177/15248380221120857.
Designboom (2019). Luca Curci Architects Proposes a Modular and Sustainable “Vertical City” for the Knowledge Summit in Dubai. https://www.designboom.com/architecture/luca-curci-architects-vertical-city-building-sustainable-knowledge-summit-dubai-11-13-2019/#:~:text=the%20city%2Dbuilding%20consists%20of,the%20top%20of%20the%20building.
Doherty, J., & Giordano, J. (2020). What We May Learn -and Need- from Pandemic Fiction. Philosophy, Ethics, and Humanities in Medicine, 15(4), 1–3. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13010-020-00089-0.
Elidrissi, R. (2021). I Am Legend as Philosophy: Imagination in Times of Pandemic. . . A Mutation towards a “Second Reality”? Journal of Science Fiction and Philosophy, 4, 1-20. https://philarchive.org/archive/ELIIAL.
Elrayies, G. M. (2022). Prophylactic Architecture: Formulating the Concept of Pandemic-Resilient Homes. Buildings, 12(927), 1–31. https://doi.org/10.3390/ buildings12070927.
Gagulina, O., & Matovnikov, S. (2018). Spatially Organized «Vertical City» as a Synthesis of Tall Buildings and Airships. E3S Web of Conferences, 33, 1–10. The Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0, September 4-8, 2017, Samara, Russia. https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/20183301002.
Garg, R., & Kumar Sharma, A. (2018). Advantages, Disadvantages and Challenges of Sustainable Vertical Cities. International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology (IRJET), 5(1), 339–345. https://www.irjet.net/archives/V5/i1/IRJET-V5I174.pdf.
Generalova, E., & Generalov, V. (2020). Mixed-Use High-Rise Buildings: A Typology of the Future. International science and technology conference "FarEastCon-2019", 753(2), 1–6. IOP Publishing Ltd, 1-4 October, 2019, Russky Island, Russian Federation. https://doi.org/10.1088/1757-899X/753/2/022062 .
Gua, X., Phillip, R., & S. Jone, D. (2018). Biophilic City, Vertical City, Forest City? Towards an Architectee. IFLA World Congress2018, 814–827. 18-21 July 2018, Singapore. https://hdl.handle.net/10536/DRO/DU:30113151.
Han, Q., & Curtis, D. R. (2020). Social Responses to Epidemics Depicted by Cinema. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 26(2), 389–394. https://doi.org/10.3201/eid2602.181022.
Han, Q., & Curtis, D. R. (2021a). Epidemics, Public Health Workers, and ‘Heroism’ in Cinematic Perspective. Visual Studies, 36(4–5), 450–462. https://doi.org/10.1080/1472586X.2021.1907781.
Han, Q., & Curtis, D. R. (2021b). Suspicious Minds: Cinematic Depiction of Distrust During Epidemic Disease Outbreaks. Medical Humanities, 47(2), 248–256. https://doi.org/10.1136/medhum-2020-011871.
Han, Q., & Curtis, D. R. (2021c). The Female Burden Visualized: Cinematic Representation of Women during Epidemics. The Journal of Popular Culture, 54(5), 1116–1142. https://doi.org/10.1111/jpcu.13070.
Henkel, D., & Wijdicks, E. F. (2022). Cinema’s Terrifying Realities: Pandemics, Zombification, and SARS-COV-2. Clinical Medicine & Research, 20(3), 121–124. https://doi.org/10.3121/cmr.2022.1742.
Hill, J. (2020). eVolo 2020 Winners. World-Architects. https://www.world-architects.com/en/architecture-news/found/evolo-2020-winners.
Hosseini, S., Barker, K., & Ramirez-Marquez, J. E. (2016). A review of Definitions and Measures of System Resilience. Reliability Engineering & System Safety, 145, 47–61. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ress.2015.08.006.
Hu, R., Pan, W., & Bock, T. (2020). Towards Dynamic Vertical Urbanism: A Novel Conceptual Approach to Develop Vertical City Using Construction Robotics, Open Building Principles, and Prefabricated Modular Construction. International Journal of Industrialized Construction, 1(1), 34-47. https://doi.org/10.29173/ijic208.
Kart, J. (2024). TruTint Smart Glass Cuts Energy Costs with Nanotechnology. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffkart/2020/09/15/trutint-smart-glass-cuts-energy-costs-with-nanotechnology/.
Kendal, E. (2018). Public Health Crises in Popular Media: How Viral Outbreak Films Affect the Public’s Health Literacy. Medical Humanities, 47(1), 11-19. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/medhum-2018-011446 .
Khalid, A. (2022). Smart, Sustainable Vertical City. Russian Journal of Building Construction and Architecture, 1(53), 106–120. https://doi.org/10.36622/VSTU.2022.53.1.010.
Kitchin, R., & Kneale, J. (2001). Science fiction or future fact? Exploring imaginative geographies of the new millennium. Progress in Human Geography, 25(1), 19–35. https://doi.org/10.1191/030913201677411564.
Kotzen, B. (2021). Future Cities: Speculation on the Case for Vertical Biophilic Cities. Ecocycles, 7(2), 50–80. https://doi.org/10.19040/ecocycles.v7i2.192.
LettUs Grow (2022). Aeroponic Technology | Indoor Farming. LettUs Grow. https://www.lettusgrow.com/aeroponic-technology.
Liu, Y. (2020). The Reflection on Architectural Form Caused by Global Issues Such as Population and Ecology. IOP Conf. Ser. Earth Environ. Sci., 526(1). 1-5. May 22024 2020, Nanning, China, https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/526/1/012007.
McGuire, K. (2021). COVID‑19, Contagion, and Vaccine Optimism. Journal of Medical Humanities, 42, 51–62. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10912-021-09677-3.
Megahed, N. A., & Ghoneim, E. M. (2020). Antivirus-built Environment: Lessons learned from Covid-19 Pandemic. Sustainable Cities and Society, 61(102350), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2020.102350.
Meng-Ren, D., Yang, C., & Hao-Xu, G. (2021). A Study of Aerial Courtyard of Super High-rise Building Based on Optimisation of Space Structure. Applied Mathematics and Nonlinear Sciences, 6(2), 65–78. https://doi.org/10.2478/amns.2021.1.00037.
Merza, S. S. (2021). Contagion (2011) as a Prediction of Global Pandemic of Covid-19. Journal of Duhok University, 24(1), 9-18. https://doi.org/10.26682/hjuod.2021.24.1.2.
Miščin, E., & Pufek, P. (2021). Duality in Novels and Films about Pandemics. Logos & Littera: Journal of Interdisciplinary Approaches to Text, 8(1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.31902/LL.2021.8.1a.
Moore, K. C. (2020). Readapting Pandemic Premediation and Propaganda: Soderbergh’s Contagion amid COVID-19. Arts, 9(4), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.3390/arts9040112.
Morgan, G. (2021). New ways: The Pandemics of Science fiction. Interface Focus, 11 (6), 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsfs.2021.0027.
Mrad, F. (2020). Urban Atmospheres in Pandemic Times. Between Science Fiction and Reality. In D. Masson (Ed.), Proceedings of the 4th International Congress on Ambiances, Alloaesthesia: Senses, Inventions, Worlds, 2 (60–65), Réseau International Ambiances, 2-4 December 2020, France. https://doi.org/10.48537/hal-03220365.
MULTI (2024). MULTI. MULTI. https://multi.tkelevator.com/.
Nicolson Cole, D., & Dewidar, K. (2018). Sustainable Vertical Urbanism as a Design Approach to Change the Future of Hyper Density Cities. Journal of Advance Research in Mechanical & Civil Engineering, 5(7), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.53555/nnmce.v5i7.300.
Novikov, S., & Gimazutdinova, E. (2021). The vertical cities: Reality or utopia of the future. E3S Web of Conferences, 274, 01014. https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/202127401014.
O’Brolcháin, F., & Brereton, P. (2021). Learning from COVID-19: Virtue Ethics, Pandemics and Environmental Degradation: A case study reading of The Andromeda Strain (1971) and Contagion (2011). Journal of Science Fiction and Philosophy, 4, 1-15. https://philpapers.org/rec/OBRLFC.
Paul, S. (2020). Contagious Disease and Commercial Cinema: A Study of Selected Films for Their Impact on Health Literacy. Global Media Journal, 12(1), 1–11. https://gmj.manipal.edu/issues/june2020/1%20Contagious%20Disease%20and%20Commercial%20Cinema.pdf.
Reis Filho, L. (2020). No Safe Space: Zombie Film Tropes during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Space and Culture, 23(3), 253–258. https://doi.org/10.1177/1206331220938642.
Scrivner, C., Johnson, J. A., Kjeldgaard-Christiansen, J., & Clasen, M. (2021). Pandemic Practice: Horror Fans and Morbidly Curious Individuals Are More Psychologically Resilient During the COVID-19 Pandemic. Personality and Individual Differences, 1(168), 1-6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2020.110397.
Sharifi, A., & Yamagata, Y. (2016). Principles and Criteria for Assessing Urban Energy Resilience: A Literature Review. Renew. Sustain. Energy Rev, 60, 1654–1677. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2016.03.028.
Sharifi, A., Khavarian-Garmsir, A. R., & Kummitha, R. K. R. (2021). Contributions of Smart City Solutions and Technologies to Resilience against the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Literature Review. Sustainability, 13(14), 2–28. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13148018.
Soderbergh, S. (Director). (2011). Contagion [Science fiction]. Warner Bros., 20th Century Studios, New Line Cinema.
Song, Z., & Fergnani, A. (2022). How Pandemic Films Help Us Understand Outbreaks: Implications for Futures and Foresight. World Futures Review, 14(1), 9–28. https://doi.org/10.1177/19467567221076569.
Sterling, B. (2024). Science fiction. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/art/science-fiction.
Suvin, D. (1979). Metamorphoses of Science Fiction: On the Poetics and History of a Literary Genre. New Haven: Yale University Press.
Testoni, I., Rossi, E., Pompele, S., Malaguti, I., & Orkibi, H. (2021). Catharsis Through Cinema: An Italian Qualitative Study on Watching Tragedies to Mitigate the Fear of COVID-19. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 12, 622174, 1–10. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2021.622174.
Trnka, S., Correll Trnka, R., & Vyas, S. (2020). Re-imagining Time in the Midst of Crisis: From Sci Fi Thrillers and Zombie Flicks to Young People’s Lived Temporalities of COVID-19. Anthropological Forum, 32(3), 266–286. https://doi.org/10.1080/00664677.2022.2113499.
Wade, L. (2022). Narratives of Outbreak and Survival in English-Language Cinema Prior to COVID-19. Socius, 8, 1-15. https://doi.org/10.1177/23780231221078242.
Walker, B., Holling, C. S., Carpenter, S. R., & Kinzig, A. (2004). Resilience, Adaptability and Transformability in Social–ecological Systems. Ecology and Society, 9(2). Available online: http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol9/iss2/art5/.
WHO (2024). COVID-19 epidemiological update – 16 February 2024. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/publications/m/item/covid-19-epidemiological-update-16-february-2024.
Xhexhi, K. (2020). Vertical Bionic City, New Futuristic Footprint. International Journal of Innovative Research in Science, Engineering and Technology (IJIRSET), 9(10), 9418–9427. https://doi.org/10.15680/IJIRSET.2020.0910003.
Yusuf, M. B., & Elghonaimoy, I. H. (2020). Housing Dilemma and Vertical Dimensions. Civil Engineering and Architecture, 8(5), 1107–1118. https://doi.org/10.13189/cea.2020.080537.
Journal of Architecture and Urban Planning
Volume 16, Issue 43
June 2024
Pages 5-28

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics