by Alex Billington
April 10, 2024
Source: YouTube
"The whole landscape was breathing a sigh of relief. You could hear it." MetFilm has revealed the official UK trailer for a documentary film tiled Wilding, an adaptation of the book of the same name from Isabella Tree. The film is a compelling look at a dying landscape that is healed against all odds, going on to thrive in astonishing ways. The book describes the creation of Knepp Wildland, the first large-scale rewilding project in lowland England. The 3,500 acres wildland project was created in the grounds of Knepp Castle, where they torn down all the fences and let nature take over again. This almost seems like the British doc version of The Biggest Little Farm doc about a couple creating a sustainable farm in California. Wilding directed by five-time Emmy Award-winner David Allen, with cinematography by multi-BAFTA & Emmy Award-winning DPs Tim Cragg and Simon de Glanville. And featuring a score composed by Biggi Hilmars and Grammy-nominated Jon Hopkins. It's set for release in June on the big screen in the UK, but has no US date set yet.
Here's the first official UK trailer (+ poster) for David Allen's doc Wilding, direct from YouTube:
"It's been a joy to work on the Wilding film with director Dave Allen and the Passion Planet team. I hope the film will bring rewilding to a wider audience and, above all, convey the message of hope that we all need to hear – that nature can rebound in astonishing ways and remarkably quickly, if we let it. The story of rewilding Knepp shows how we can restore wildlife and tackle climate change. It's a movement that is gathering pace and we can all do our bit. From large landholding to urban park, back garden and window box, we are all part of the picture. We can all help stitch nature back together again, resuscitating the life-support system on which all species on this planet – including our own – depends." –Author Isabella Tree
Based on Isabella Tree's best-selling book of the same name, Wilding tells the story of a young couple that bets on nature for the future of their failing, 400 year old estate. They battle entrenched tradition, and dare to place the fate of their farm in the hands of nature. Ripping down the fences, they set the land back to the wild and entrust its recovery to a motley mix of animals both tame and wild. It is the beginning of a grand experiment that will become one of the most significant rewilding experiments in Europe. Wilding is directed by the British producer / filmmaker David Allen, making his feature directorial debut after also producing the docs The Serengeti Rules and My Garden of a Thousand Bees. Adapted from Isabella Tree's book Wilding: The Return of Nature to a British Farm published in 2018. Produced by Passion Pictures in collaboration with HHMI Tangled Bank Studios. MetFilm opens Wilding in UK + Ireland cinemas starting on June 14th, 2024 this summer. No US release date is set yet. For more info, visit the film's official site.