Arcadia

Nature is slowly being degraded by humans, and most of us accept this without feeling any responsibility. We explain to ourselves that we have no control over it, that it has to be this way. Despite the power of nature, it has no voice of its own and cannot tell us how much it is suffering these days. It can only show us.

In my film, I wanted to capture images of the world that we destroyed so easily. Nothing needs to be emphasized or embellished. What we recorded with the camera's eye was brutal and terrifying enough. Some people saw the film and called it an ecological horror. But there are no monsters or horrific killers - unless that's how we define ourselves, the people who make it happen.

Getting to the places shown in the film and being able to record them was often very difficult and required months of effort from us. Of course, we also met with many refusals. People are ashamed of their cruelty. Places such as slaughterhouses are carefully guarded from prying eyes and even more so from cameras.

Poetic black and white frames are supposed to contrast with the content we see on the screen. I wanted to create a documentary full of visual and sound impressions. In this way, I manage to speak to the viewer less directly and act on his senses and subconscious.
The end of the film gives the viewer a lot to think about, whether it's a vision of the future that awaits us if we do not change our behavior or the longed-for peace that will come when there will be nothing left on earth, including humans.

"Arcadia" raises an extremely important topic, but in a form very different from the classic narrative. It draws the viewer to the screen with magnetic stares of animals that say more than any words. It takes us on a journey into a world that is uncomfortable and brings its dirt to the surface. In addition, it makes us ask ourselves a question from which we cannot escape. Are we owners of this planet, or just one of its inhabitants?