Shifting Baselines

Shifting Baselines (2026)



0.0 2026 100 min —

Director: Julien Elie

Documentary
On the edge of Boca Chica, Texas, where the Gulf of Mexico meets the Rio Grande, the village once pulsed with the steady rhythm of the tide. Yet this untamed landscape is now trembling on the brink of permanent transformation. The marshes have been siphoned dry, the shorelines sealed off, and family homes quietly erased—all under the growing shadow of a skyscraper-tall rocket, poised to tear through the atmosphere and into the void beyond.

More About This Film

Shifting Baselines is a Canadian documentary focused on Boca Chica, Texas, where a small coastal community has been transformed by the rapid development of SpaceX's Starbase launch facility. Through the changing landscape, residents, scientists, and observers consider what happens when a place defined by wetlands and wildlife becomes part of a new technological frontier.

Shot in black and white, the film creates a striking contrast between the vast natural environment and the industrial scale of the space program. It asks broader questions about environmental change, development, capitalism, and the idea of progress without reducing the subject to a simple argument.

  • Directed and written by Julien Elie.
  • Samantha Lawler, Jonathan McDowell, and Daniel Pauly appear as featured voices.
  • Cinematography was handled by François Messier-Rheault and Glauco Bermudez.
  • The film runs approximately 100 minutes.
  • It received multiple festival recognitions, including one win and several nominations.

Where to Watch

Shifting Baselines is best followed through documentary distributors and specialty streaming services as its international release expands.

  • MUBI – subscription where available
  • Criterion Channel – subscription where available
  • ARTE – free or subscription access where available
  • Prime Video – rental or purchase where available
  • Apple TV – rental or purchase where available
  • JustWatch – availability guide by region