The synopsis of the feature doc Only On Earth by Robin Petré tells a terrifying story of climate change deep in the heart of Europe. The film comprises a journey into southern Galicia, one of Europe’s most vulnerable wildfire zones, during the hottest summer ever recorded. Here, humans and animals alike struggle to cope as inextinguishable fires draw closer. Wild horses have roamed the Galician mountains for centuries. Their grazing is indispensable when it comes to fire prevention, but they are vanishing in today’s clash between human progress and nature.
“Only On Earth will be a cinematic, visually stunning and captivating film about wild horses, cowboys, wild fires and a world tipping out of balance,” explains Danish producer Malene of Flindt Pedersen of Hansen & Pedersen. “The themes of this film are of great current interest and of timeless human relevance – even though the wild horses and the cowboy culture in Only On Earth are geographically specific to Galicia – the clash between man and nature is a universal and highly urgent topic.”
She adds that the film will be a “testimony” of the droughts and ferocious forest fires raging in Galicia – as in the rest of the world – but also of the ancient traditions of southern Galicia where ganaderos, Galician cowboys, have been living in pact with the wild horses for centuries, and where the local farmers are as good as self-sufficient, living with their animals and their crops far from the big cities. “Thus, the film will tap into the longing and nostalgia that many of us feel towards another way of life – a life more in balance and in pact with nature – while also tapping into the global issues of climate change and the biodiversity crisis,” she says.
Director Robin Petré has already won a slew of awards. Her short film Pulse (2016) won the Silver Dove in DOK Leipzig, the Silver Eye Award at Ji.hlava, as well as prizes at Doclisboa, FICMEC Intl. Environmental Film Festival and FIKE Évora International Short. Her first feature doc, From The Wild Sea premiered at Berlinale in 2021 before its selection at more than 50 festivals worldwide (including Sheffield, CPH:DOX, Sydney FF, Ji.hlava and Full Frame), picking up several prizes and special mentions en route, including the Grand Prix at Global Science Film Festival, Best Marine Film at Green Screen International Wildlife Film Festival, and an Honourable Mention for the Impact Award at Vancouver Intl. Film Festival.
“We were immediately struck by Robin’s clear vision and highly cinematic style, and by her commitment to an immersive approach to story-telling,” says producer Pedersen. “She brings you deep into the world she creates on screen; a world which stimulates all your senses. The development filming undertaken for the project, which captures the essence of the documentary’s four central characters, transports the viewer to Galicia: you can feel the ferocious heat of the wildfires and smell their thick, bitter smoke. This immersive style is also evident in Robin’s previous works. Her debut feature, From the Wild Sea, shows the same keen eye for detail and ability to tell a story from a range of perspectives. Using animal perspectives, one of Robin’s stylistic trademarks, was something new and intriguing to us. Her daring and original cinematic voice is what makes Robin the kind of filmmaker we strive to collaborate with.”
“There have been many films about climate change, [but] this is not just another one,” Pedersen continues. There will be no facts and numbers, no moralisation. The footage that director Robin Petré and DOP Maria Grazia Goya so far has brought home from Galicia is amazing. The most breathtakingly beautiful and frightening footage. Robin has a way of watching the world and showing it to us, the audience, that makes us see both the world and ourselves, the humans, in a different light. We are convinced that her look, and her vision, is exactly what we need in order to see and feel the state of the world in a new way. This film will be a sensuous, emotional experience that will make us really feel the nature and experience a way of life closer to it. Thus, we believe that Only On Earth can make us rethink our relationship and co-existence with nature.”
The 90/58-minute film, for which 70% of the €1,069,035 budget is in place, has a mooted release of January 2025. At Cannes Pedersen is looking for festivals, gap financing, buyers and distributors. Since December 2022, Marieke van den Bersselaar and Carles Brugueras from Polar Star Films have been onboard as co-producers.
“We believe audiences worldwide will want to see Only On Earth because it is not like any other documentary addressing the climate crisis,” Pedersen underlines. “Its objective is not to instil viewers with fear, preach to them or bombard them with statistics. Rather, the film’s distinctly cinematic approach will gently compel audiences to engage in the issues at stake. We’re confident Only On Earth will leave a lasting impression on its viewers, encouraging them to confront an uncomfortable truth about the direction our planet is heading. At the same time, it will also capture the harmonious, awe-inspiring co-existence between humans and nature; the relationship between the Galician cowboys and the wild horses, the connection between the wild horses and the landscape in which they live, and the passion our characters have for the place they call home.”
