A New Kind of Wilderness

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A New Kind of Wilderness
A New Kind of Wilderness Poster.jpg
Poster
Directed bySilje Evensmo Jacobsen
Produced byMari Bakke Riise
Silje Evensmo Jacobsen
StarringMaria Gros Vatne
Nik Payne
Ronja Bede Vatne
Freja Vatne Payne
Falk Vatne Payne
Ulv Vatne Payne
CinematographySilje Evensmo Jacobsen
Karine Fosser
Fred Arne Wergeland
Espen Gjermundrød
Line K. Lyngstadaas
Natalja Safronova
Edited byKristian Tveit
Christoffer Heie
Music byOlav Øyehaug & Daniel Norgren
Sound:
Yngve Leidulv Sætre
Composer:
Olav Øyehaug
Production
company
A5 Film
Release date
  • 19 January 2024 (2024-01-19)(Sundance)
Running time
84 minutes
CountryNorway
Languages Norwegian
English

A New Kind of Wilderness (Norwegian: Ukjent Landskap) is a 2024 documentary film directed by Silje Evensmo Jacobsen. [1] [2] [3] The film got official selections at 2024 Sundance Film Festival, CPH:DOX 2024, 50th Seattle International Film Festival, Edinburgh International Film Festival 2024, International Istanbul Film Festival 2024 and 2nd Eikhoigi Imphal International Film Festival. [4] [5] [6] [7]

Contents

Synopsis

The documentary follows a Norwegian family, parents Maria and Nik Payne and their four children, living an isolated life on a sustainable farm. Tragedy strikes when Maria passes away. Nik is left to relocate himself and his children to a larger city, no longer able to afford life on the farm. [8]

Reception

Tom Grierson of Screen Daily opined, "In keeping with its honest, no-frills approach, A New Kind of Wilderness does not build to a grand climax or shattering epiphanies. Life simply moves on, and the Paynes adjust to a new reality, their broken hearts slowly mending." [9] Daniel Fienberg of The Hollywood Reporter wrote, "The ideal life in A New Kind of Wilderness is one of quiet contentment, and that’s the level on which I found myself appreciating the documentary by the end. Go in expecting that, rather than any extremes, and it might be even easier to come away with affection well beyond the film’s tiny scale." [10] Cody Dericks of Next Best Picture observed, "It's impossible to watch A New Kind of Wilderness and not feel something close to affection for the family. It's an endlessly compassionate look at the human heart and the feelings we all share, regardless of circumstances." [11]

Santanu Das of Hindustan Times reviewed, "A New Kind of Wilderness is about grief and parenthood, as much it is about one's place in this world. The small moments between Nik and the children, captured tenderly in the latter half echo with true empathy and care for these people. I was reminded of Debra Granik's wondrous feature film Leave No Trace , where Thomasin Mckenzie makes the tough decision whether to stay with her isolated father in the woods. I longed for that toughness in A New Kind of Wilderness, but perhaps this is a film that refuses that wound to enter into the affectionate portrait of a family at play here." [12]

Accolades

FestivalAwardResultRef.
Seattle International Film Festival 2024Documentary Competition AwardWon [13]
2024 Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize: World Cinema DocumentaryWon
21st Reykjavík International Film Festival 2024Best Documentary: A Different TomorrowWon [14]
ZagrebDox 2024Special MentionWon [15]
Big StampNominated
El Gouna Film Festival 2024Bronze StarWon [16]
Golden StarNominated
Amanda Award 2024, NorwayBest Documentary (Årets dokumentarfilm)Won [17]
Best Director (Årets regi)Nominated
Thessaloniki Documentary Festival 2024Golden Alexander AwardNominated [18]
Visions du Réel 2024Grand Angle Competition: Audience AwardNominated [19]
25th Calgary International Film Festival 2024Best International DocumentaryNominated [20]
Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Film Festival 2024Best DocumentaryNominated [21]
Cinema Eye Honors 2025, USSpotlight AwardNominated [22]
Montclair Film Festival 2024Bruce Sinofsky Prize for Documentary FeatureNominated [23]
Docville 2024Jury AwardNominated

References

  1. Guy Lodge. "'A New Kind of Wilderness' Review: A Grieving Family Returns to Civilization in a Heartsore Documentary". Variety . Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  2. Addie Morfoot. "'A New Kind of Wilderness' Director on How She Turned a Living-Off-the-Grid Doc Into an Exquisitely Heartbreaking Story of a Family". Variety. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  3. "A New Kind of Wilderness". hotdocs.ca. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  4. "A New Kind of Wilderness (2024)". mub.com. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  5. "A New Kind of Wilderness - Edinburgh International Film Festival". www.edfilmfest.org. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  6. "A New Kind of Wilderness". cphdox.dk. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  7. "A New Kind of Wilderness - İstanbul Film Festivali - İKSV". film.iksv.org. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  8. "'A New Kind of Wilderness' Review: A Small but Stirring Portrait of a Family in Transition". The Hollywood Reporter.
  9. Tom Grierson. "'A New Kind Of Wilderness': Sundance Review". Screen Daily. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  10. Daniel Fienberg. "'A New Kind of Wilderness' Review: A Small but Stirring Portrait of a Family in Transition". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  11. Cody Dericks. ""A NEW KIND OF WILDERNESS" - Review". Next Best Picture. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  12. Santanu Das. "A New Kind of Wilderness review: Intimate documentary about a family returning to new normal". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  13. "A New Kind of Wilderness". www.siff.net. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  14. "RIFF announces winners of 2024 and celebrates the end of its 21st edition". www.icelandicfilmcentre.is. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  15. "A New Kind of Wilderness". zagrebdox.net. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  16. "A NEW KIND OF WILDERNESS". elgounafilmfestival.com. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  17. Aleksander Huser. "Sex, docs and undead biggest winners at the Norwegian Amanda Awards". nordiskfilmogtvfond.com. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  18. "A New Kind of Wilderness". www.filmfestival.gr. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  19. "A New Kind of Wilderness – Films". www.visionsdureel.ch. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  20. "ANNOUNCING THE FIRST WAVE OF FILMS AT 25th ANNIVERSARY OF THE CALGARY INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL!" (PDF). www.ciffcalgary.ca. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  21. "A New Kind of Wilderness". mspfilm.org. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  22. "A New Kind of Wilderness". cinemaeyehonors.com. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
  23. "A New Kind of Wilderness". montclairfilm.org. Retrieved 20 March 2025.