Santa Barbara City College Student’s Documentary ‘Titans’ to Show at SBIFF

Teenage filmmaker Sheena Rock’s documentary Titans — which will be featured this Saturday at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival — challenges conventional environmental narratives by exploring the unintended beauty and ecological benefits of Santa Barbara’s offshore oil rigs. 

The Santa Barbara City College student’s short is composed of firsthand interviews, historical context, and personal meditation on the towering structures — both their grandiose presence and the vibrant life they sustain beneath the waves. Shot entirely on an iPhone, Titans challenges audiences to look beyond the argument that the oil rigs should be removed simply for aesthetic reasons, aiming to elevate the industrial giants beyond mere machinery. 

What began as a fascination with their striking size evolved into a passion for their ecological significance, explained Rock, who has been creating films since the age of 13. Titans weaves together history, industry, and conservation, featuring perspectives from the general public and those who have worked on the rigs directly, such as leading UCSB marine biologist Milton Love. 

The film is broken into three portions, each going into depth on a different aspect of the controversy surrounding the oil rigs. This includes the rigs’ historical significance and environmental benefits, and a call to action on why it’s important to leave them standing.

According to Rock, the film does not just document these structures for their environmental benefits and deep historical relevance in Santa Barbara; it also casts them as divine sentinels of Santa Barbara’s coast.

“They’re so godlike when you get up to them,” Rock said. “That’s where the name Titans came from — thinking of them as being gods. The short poem that I wrote, which is read at the beginning of the film, is about comparing them to the titans from Greek mythology.”

Rock confronts the notion that environmental progress can only come from removing the oil rigs entirely. While acknowledging the harms of the oil industry, Titans argues that erasing every trace of them is more harmful. 

“I made the film as a love letter to the structures, in part, but the promotion for it is very much about the environment.” 

Rock aims to get across a nuanced understanding that factors in the mistakes of the past, such as the 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill, and the conservation efforts that have emerged in their wake.

“Just because oil is bad doesn’t mean the whole thing has to go,” Rock said. “I think there’s a lot of lack of awareness of the big picture — and I wanted to bring awareness to it.” 

Titans will be featured as part of the free Youth CineMedia Shorts screening on Saturday, February 15, at 11 a.m. at the SBIFF Film Center, Auditorium #1 (916 State St.). See sbiff.org.