Elements of(f) Balance

Against the background of our increasingly threatened environment, which is facing immense ecological challenges, journey to ecosystems hardly ever seen before. How can ecological interdependence, co-creation, resilience and collaboration in nature lead us away from dystopian visions of the future?

During his more than four decades of filmmaking, Othmar Schmiderer has tackled a variety of subjects, yet he returns to themes connected to rural life and culture: how can you still live off the soil, what meaning do traditions connected with peasant society and values have in a here and now defined by cities and technological progress?

In Elements of(f) Balance, now, his concerns take on a global dimension: if mankind managed to damage this planet’s ecosystem then surely it also knows how to re-strike the balance? Finding exemplary, often surprising answers to this assumption sees Schmiderer travel to Italy, Bangladesh, Ukraine, the Netherlands, the People’s Republic of China and Austria, meeting people experimenting with fungi or jellyfish, repurposing ancient techniques like permaculture, and so on. The urgency of the matter is balanced by the film’s tranquillity, its sense of grandeur, which makes the audience feel and understand how much the human mind can process – thanks to the genius and generosity of the world it lives with.

– Olaf Möller

Trailer

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