This paper outlines the concept for an imaginative science fiction film titled Rebirth, in which humanity's environmental destruction forces a family to time-travel back to the Cretaceous period. The paper draws on geological and paleontological knowledge of the Cretaceous era — including continental shifts, volcanic activity, climate conditions, and dinosaur diversity — to explore how humans might realistically (or unrealistically) survive in a prehistoric environment. The concept uses speculative science to comment on modern environmental issues, including carbon emissions, deforestation, and global warming, while grounding the narrative in actual geological and atmospheric conditions of the late Mesozoic Era.
Today's environmentalists often warn the public about the harmful effects of human activity. Yet, despite repeated cautions about excessive carbon emissions from vehicles and the consequences of deforestation, society does not seem to fully grasp just how harmful these actions can be. If we do not take action to alleviate these problems, the warnings will turn into reality, and we risk not only harming but ultimately destroying the planet's most precious life.
The film concept discussed below provides a context for these harms — albeit an imaginary one. The film, titled Rebirth, depicts a future in which humanity has destroyed the Earth's environment to such an extent that humans are forced to utilize existing means to escape their deplorable situation. Unlike the Pixar film Wall-E, which portrays life after Earth has been completely filled with rubbish and features only one surviving robot, Rebirth is not concerned with space travel. Instead, recognizing that space travel is not only difficult but also expensive and time-consuming, the humans in this film utilize time travel — which, for hypothetical reasons, is treated as more plausible — and journey to an era when Earth was still in a pristine condition.
That era is the Cretaceous period, a time when dinosaurs still roamed the Earth. The film's tagline will be "Going back in time in order to move forward," or alternatively, "To save humanity's future, repopulate in the past." The narrative follows a family's journey back to the Cretaceous period, where they must adapt to conditions radically different from the present — both environmentally and geologically.
The film opens by showing a young boy playing with his dog in a peaceful, tropical climate, characteristic of the Cretaceous period. This opening has a happy tone, but the audience soon senses that something is "off." The dog runs away while the boy calls it back. With the happy feeling gone, the audience sees the dog drinking from a pond beside a dinosaur. The dinosaur roars and attempts to smell the dog but does not eat it — the reason for which is explained later in the film.
Though the movie takes place on an ancient North American continent, it focuses on how the family adapts to various geological events, such as constant volcanic eruptions caused by continental shifts. The film also explores the family's daily life among dinosaurs and incorporates specific descriptions of other natural and social elements of the era.
The Cretaceous period — the last period in which dinosaurs survived — is an ideal setting for this story because a great deal is known about it, and because the continents were already beginning to form recognizable shapes, meaning certain features, though distant in time, will seem somewhat familiar to audiences. This was also the period that ended with a massive asteroid impact; however, the family arrives at the very beginning of the Cretaceous, well before that catastrophic event. It was still an era when dinosaurs ruled the broken-up remnants of the supercontinent Pangaea, yet rodents and other early mammals we recognize today had begun to appear more freely. These familiar elements prove helpful to the family as the story unfolds.
According to National Geographic, the Cretaceous period was characterized by "shifted continents, expanded coasts, and widened oceans," which set in motion dramatic changes to the planet's flora and fauna. These geological and ecological transformations form the backdrop against which the family must learn to survive.
One of the most serious environmental challenges the family faces is volcanic activity. Because the continents were actively shifting during the Cretaceous, volcanic eruptions were frequent. In order to address this, the film introduces a scenario in which humans have developed scientific methods to contain volcanic eruptions or minimize their effects — for example, by constructing homes at great heights from materials resistant to extreme heat, such as reinforced steel beams.
Volcanic activity during this era could increase sulfuric acid concentrations in the atmosphere, thereby temporarily cooling the climate. However, humans in the film would not be greatly affected by this, given the overall warmth of the period described below. Of greater concern is the CO2 released by volcanic activity, which could — particularly when combined with human activity introduced into this ancient period — eventually contribute to global warming and threaten the plants essential to the survival of various living beings. The film thus emphasizes that humans must be extremely careful about how they treat their new environment, lest they repeat the same mistakes that drove them to flee the future in the first place.
This theme reinforces the film's central environmental message: that the consequences of human carelessness are not confined to any one era. Whether in the present or the distant past, irresponsible behavior carries geological and ecological costs. The family's struggle with Cretaceous volcanism thus serves as a direct metaphor for contemporary concerns about global warming and atmospheric pollution.
"How humans might coexist with prehistoric dinosaurs"
"Cretaceous climate and human food challenges"
Humans would have to consider the kind of food they could find to survive. Bringing some future supplies would help bridge the gap between modern and ancient conditions, but these would not last forever. These are all issues that must be examined scientifically to determine whether humans could actually survive in any dinosaur-based environment. Given that there is no evidence of humans having coexisted with dinosaurs, placing them in this context is necessarily unrealistic. However, the film imagines that science could find a way to either alter the environment or place humans within a kind of protective enclosure — a bubble, metaphorically and perhaps literally — to help them survive in a pristine, prehistoric Earth.
Ultimately, Rebirth is not merely a science fiction adventure. It is a cautionary tale grounded in geological fact. By depicting a future so damaged by human neglect that its inhabitants must flee into the deep past, the film asks its audience to reflect on the environmental choices being made today. The Cretaceous period, with all its volcanic upheaval, towering carnivores, and alien climate, serves as a mirror: a vision of what Earth can be when it is not yet broken, and a reminder of what we stand to lose if we continue on our current course.
You’re 71% through this paper. Sign up to read the remaining 2 sections.
Sign Up Now — Instant Access Already a member? Log inAlways verify citation format against your institution’s current style guide requirements.