in the time of global warming

Why a film on snow ?

fox in the snow

Snow holds a unique place in our lives and our imaginations, encompassing magic, nostalgia, fear and enigma.

Now it has arrived at a defining moment in the age of the Anthropocene: for much of the world there will be a before and after the disappearance of snow.

“Will there still be a white Christmas?”, is an increasingly desperate question in the era of climate change.

Winters are shortening. Global warming is disrupting the movement of winter storm systems in the northern hemisphere, causing brutal localized snowfall in some places and in others a “shortage”.

Fauna and flora are being disrupted: in the Alps, the snowpack is decreasing and with it, the ability of animals and plants to cope with winter. Men and women whose economic survival depends on snow are increasingly helpless. Ski resorts are resorting to artificial snow to stay open.

The fear that this beauty may disappear inspired the film: a celebration of the wonder of the snow, in all its forms.

Get the information brochure

Presentation of the film

snowcat packing down the snow
Hitech Snowcat at work on the slopes.

In a planet transforming with global warming, the film travels across the northern hemisphere, from east to west, exploring the nature of snow and our relationship with it.

At the heart of the film, a team of French Snowcat drivers are faced by increasingly unpredictable snowfall. Their ski resort badly needs snow in time for Christmas.

The story follows a winter depression tracking across North America and the Atlantic before reaching Iceland and then descending to Central Europe.

The depression forms over the United States and completely buries a zoo in snow. A young researcher tries to unravel the mystery of this extraordinarily heavy snowfall. Traversing Iceland, the depression turns into a blizzard, putting a group of hikers at risk. In France the Snowcat drivers continue their vigil… even their artificial snow makers need colder weather before they can operate. Their ski station is in a race against time to have any chance of opening for the winter holidays but the winter weather is now stuck in the east by the Siberian high. The depression inches its way south past Belarus. In a virgin and timeless wilderness, fluffy snow falls, enveloping the forest in its deep protective coat.

Finally the long-awaited depression arrives in France. The ski resort bursts into life.

Around the project

The film crew

Film pre-production

road and snow-capped mountains in Iceland
All roads lead to the snow-capped mountains, in Iceland..…

After a long period of research, we carried out several location recces, including Belarus, the Alpes-de-Hautes-Provence, upstate New York in the United States and Iceland. All provided invaluable field information for the final shooting scrip of the film.

Film pre-production

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