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Rob Petit’s documentary Underland takes us into a succession of subterranean worlds to consider notions of Deep Time and our place in the long arm of history. From caverns where Mayan forebears placed handprints on the walls to storm drains where more recent graffiti artists have left their mark and the scientific Snolab, the film – based on Robert Macfarlane’s book of the same name – looks into the past and possible futures. Narrated by German A-lister Sandra Hüller, this is a poetic and philosophical dive as well as a visually immersive one. We caught up with Petit shortly after his film had premiered at Tribeca Film Festival to talk about taking a deep dive into hidden worlds.

You’ve said that almost straight away as you were reading Macfarlane’s book that...

After revisions to the Oxford Junior Dictionary, a widely used children’s dictionary, led to the removal of such nature words as “acorn,” “bluebell” and “otter” in favor of such technology-centric words as “attachment,” “broadband,” and “voice-mail,” writer Robert Macfarlane and illustrator Jackie Morris reacted with their book The Lost Words: A Spell Book (2017). It helped to create a broader discussion and protest about the loss of nature itself, along with a celebration of creatures and plants that share the planet with humans.

Hannah Papacek Harper’s feature directorial debut, Lost for Words, which she also wrote and which is getting its U.K. premiere at Sheffield DocFest on Saturday, was inspired by the book.

The documentary, which world premiered at Cph:dox in Copenhagen, features cinematography by Tess Barthes and editing by Becky Manson. It is a rare visual, audio, and musical experience that takes audiences on a trip through nature and thought.

Man’s connection and fascination with what lies beneath our feet is ancient. Myths about underworlds span across cultures and religions and, to this day, the underground is a place that is open for exploitation, exploration, reverence or dread. Rob Petit’s visually arresting documentary – based on Robert Macfarlane’s bestseller of the same name – takes us into some of these spaces with a handful of people who know them the best.

A chorus of expert voices is framed by philosophical interjections from Macfarlane’s book, narrated by German A-lister Sandra Hüller. With its heavyweight producers including Darren Aronofsky and Lauren Greenwood, it’s highly likely to be coming to a cinema near you at some point. While the brevity of the running time means that it doesn’t always dig as deeply as it might, this is nevertheless a polished and beguiling piece of cinema that invites us to forge our own associations.

Based on British author Robert Macfarlane’s non-fiction book of the same name, Underland, the feature debut from Rob Petit, investigates the world hidden beneath our feet. In particular, the film ventures into the depths of a cave system in Mexico once used for ancient Mayan rites; a Canadian dark matter research facility located two kilometers beneath the surface; the exhilarating, if treacherous, storm drain system beneath Las Vegas; and a haphazardly abandoned uranium mine in the American Southwest. Composed of six chapters strung together by hypnotic narration from Sandra Hüller, Underland literally probes the human drive for discovery and, conversely, […]

The post “Dark, Difficult, Dank Spaces”: Rob Petit on His Tribeca World Premiere Underland first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.

Based on British author Robert Macfarlane’s non-fiction book of the same name, Underland, the feature debut from Rob Petit, investigates the world hidden beneath our feet. In particular, the film ventures into the depths of a cave system in Mexico once used for ancient Mayan rites; a Canadian dark matter research facility located two kilometers beneath the surface; the exhilarating, if treacherous, storm drain system beneath Las Vegas; and a haphazardly abandoned uranium mine in the American Southwest. Composed of six chapters strung together by hypnotic narration from Sandra Hüller, Underland literally probes the human drive for discovery and, conversely, […]

The post “Dark, Difficult, Dank Spaces”: Rob Petit on His Tribeca World Premiere Underland first appeared on Filmmaker Magazine.

As humanity continues mining Earth’s resources with wanton abandon, the concerns of those with the most influence have been towards the skies––the space dreams of inhabiting another planet once we’ve depleted all this one has to offer. But what could exploring Earth’s subterranean wonders tell us about the origins and future of our species? Robert Macfarlane’s evocatively transportive, poetically imaginative 2019 book Underland investigated such questions through the perspectives of those seeking the void. In adapting the text to the screen, Rob Petit takes a compelling (if more straightforward) excavation into the depths of our planet.

Weaving the separate travels of three intrepid explorers, the Darren Aronofsky-produced Underland follows Fátima Tec Pool, an archaeologist in Mexico who travels through the otherworldly wonders that are cenotes––natural sinkholes mainly found in the Yucatán Peninsula across which her Mayan ancestors also traveled hundreds of years ago. Bradley Garrett...

Darren Aronofsky may be preparing to debut his buzzy crime novel adaptation “Caught Stealing” with Austin Butler, but the auteur also has produced another film based on a book coming soon: documentary “Underland.” The film, which will premiere at Tribeca 2025, brings author Robert Macfarlane’s nature book of the same name to the big screen.

“Underland” is billed as a “cinematic documentary that voyages into worlds rarely glimpsed by human eyes,” mostly involving underground geological phenomenons. The logline reads: “Beginning in the shallow soils beneath an old ash tree, we travel alongside several ‘astronauts of the underworld’ into ancient sacred caves, flooded storm drains, melting glaciers, underwater burial chambers and a deep underground laboratory built to solve the mysteries of the Universe. … We know so little of the world beneath our feet. To most it is a place only of fear and darkness, though to a brave few it is...

A well-crafted study of a neglected artist who died after the plane he was flying disappeared during the second world war

“Exhilarating, enthralling and outstandingly beautiful. A revelation.” That was the verdict of Observer art critic Laura Cummings in 2015 on the first major exhibition of Eric Ravilious’ watercolours since he was killed in 1942 aged 39 while serving as a war artist. His work was almost forgotten until his children found a stash under a bed in the 1970s.

This well-crafted documentary makes a thorough and convincing case for Ravilious as a major figure in early 20th-century art. It’s a portrait of the artist as a tea-sipping cheerful sort of a chap with not an ounce of artistic torture in his body – which might go some way to explaining why he was ignored for so long. That and the fact that his gentle, comforting pastorals are so easy on the eye.

The actor and musician on his first kiss, a treasured watch and the truth about fame and money

Born in South Africa, Johnny Flynn, 39, studied at Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art. He played the lead in Netflix’s Lovesick, went on to appear in TV adaptations of Vanity Fair and Les Misérables and was Olivier-nominated for his role in the play Jerusalem. His film credits include Emma, Stardust, Operation Mincemeat and The Outfit. Last year, he released an album with nature writer Robert Macfarlane, Lost in the Cedar Wood; the pair embark on a five-date tour from 26 April. He is married with three children and lives in London.

When were you happiest?

When I was about eight, by a river waiting for my dad to finish fishing, eating a Mars bar, drinking a can of Coke and listening to Beat It by Michael Jackson on my Walkman. I remember...

UK scheme aimed at first time filmmakers.

UK-based female-focused film organisation Birds’ Eye View has revealed the 18 first-time filmmakers selected for this year’s Filmonomics business training programme.

The cohort have been chosen for the sixth iteration of the scheme, which is aimed at feature writers, directors and producers of marginalised genders who are either on the verge of making their first feature, or have just made or released their debut.

The 18 participants are Afia Nkrumah, Bircan Birol, Cherish Oteka, Emily Everdee, Fozia Khaliq, Isla Badenoch, Jo Tracy, Katie Dolan, Lesley-Anne Macfarlane, Libby Potter, Lidz-Ama Appiah, Liv Little, Lizzie Mackenzie,...

Revisiting a formula that worked well in Mountain, director Jennifer Peedom lets Willem Dafoe’s voiceover run away with bland generalities

Australian director Jennifer Peedom had a huge hit with her 2017 documentary Mountain, descanting on the majesty of mountains. I found myself carried along by its admittedly gushy mix of great cinematography, swirling orchestral score, sonorous voiceover from Willem Dafoe and prose-poetic script by Robert Macfarlane. Peedom has now done it again, this time on the subject of rivers with the usual montage of powerful images.

Visually rich though it still is, I have to admit to being a bit restless with this kind of globalist Imax-style docu-fantasia – a hangover, maybe, from the success of Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life. The droning observations can be platitudinous and verging on insufferable. “The world’s great cities all have a river at their heart!” intones Dafoe. This film has a story,...

Director Jennifer Peedom’s follows her record-breaking documentary Mountain with River, again created in collaboration with the Australian Chamber Orchestra and narrated by Willem Dafoe.

Produced by Stranger than Fiction Films and Arrow Pictures, River is a cinematic and musical reflection on how rivers have shaped both the planet’s elaborate landscapes and all human existence.

Dafoe’s narration guides audiences on a journey across 39 countries, including Australia, with a script written by renowned writer and environmentalist Robert Macfarlane.

River is the second of a planned trilogy of feature documentaries that explores the impact of landscape on the human heart, and was conceived as both a film for cinemas and one that would have its score played live by the Aco.

River will be presented live in concert with the Aco July 29 – August 10, followed by a national cinema release from October 7 via Madman Entertainment.

The post ‘River’ (Trailer) appeared first on If Magazine.

"Where rivers wandered, life could flourish... They have shaped us as a species." Dogwoof has unveiled the first official trailer for another stunning new documentary film titled River, a follow-up to the doc feature Mountain made by filmmaker Jennifer Peedom a few years ago. River is a cinematic and musical odyssey that explores the remarkable relationship between humans and rivers. Featuring text by Robert Macfarlane, with music by Richard Tognetti and the Australian Chamber Orchestra (Aco), and featuring music by Jonny Greenwood and Radiohead. With narration by Willem Dafoe. Peedom is one of my favorite doc directors, she creates mesmerizing works of cinematic art that celebrate the majestic and incomparable beauty of this planet we live on. Rivers have indeed played an important part in human civilization since the beginning, and I'm looking forward to watching them explore this in-depth in the film. I adore this kind of filmmaking. Here's...

The Willem Dafoe-narrated documentary “River,” from “Sherpa” director Jennifer Peedom, has unveiled its first trailer.

Produced by Stranger Than Fiction and Arrow Pictures, “River” is an exploration of the timeless relationship between humanity and rivers. Billed as an orchestral concert film, the doc is an ode to the natural word and a retelling of the history of both rivers and human civilization.

“When the first rains fell, the Earth awakened,” reads Dafoe in the moving trailer, which features stunning footage of river systems around the world. “Where rivers wandered, life could flourish. They have shaped us as a species and we worship them as gods. Today, there is scarcely a river unspanned, undammed or undiverted. The sheer scale of the human project has begun to overwhelm the world’s rivers.”

With a score composed by Richard Tognetti from the Australian Chamber Orchestra, Dafoe narrates a script from award-winning author...

Willem Dafoe is set to narrate the documentary “River” from “Sherpa” director Jennifer Peedom.

Produced by Stranger Than Fiction and Arrow Pictures, “River” is an exploration of the timeless relationship between humanity and rivers. Billed as an orchestral concert film, the doc is an ode to the natural word and a retelling of the history of both rivers and human civilization. With a score composed by Richard Tognetti from the Australian Chamber Orchestra, Dafoe will narrate a script from award-winning author and fellow of Cambridge University, Robert Macfarlane. The film will also feature additional music from William Barton, Jonny Greenwood and Radiohead.

“I wanted to be conscious of not dumping the words on top of the image or illustrating the music, but having them sonically blend,” said Dafoe, who also narrated Peedom’s 2017 doc “Mountain.”

“Of course there is some underlining but I try to let the words just open channels of thought and emotion,...