As The Tide Comes In (Før stormen) presented by Cinetopia:DOC and Take One Action!
The 27 residents of tiny Mandø island, in the Danish Wadden Sea are no strangers to severe weather and flooding. As the relentless impact of climate change continues, Mandø’s inhabitants now face a serious existential threat. Gregers, an eight generation islander and the last resident farmer, refuses to give up or to build a life elsewhere despite the rising waters threatening his very survival. Instead, he hopes to find a wife to manage the farm with him.
As the islanders prepare for a coming storm, we follow their daily routines and community life, their laments and small joys. Gregers and his faithful dog inspect the obsolete dikes that protect his beloved island. Mie blows out the candles of her 100th-year birthday cake. Ellen and Ingeborg complain about the moon disease they suffer from, birdwatcher Niels laments about the rare birds that don’t come to the island any-more, and tourist guide Preben tells stories about past deadly floods to summer visitors.
Despite the new threats from the rising sea, today's generation holds on steadfastly to their little part of the world.The portrait of this microcosm is accompanied by masterfully crafted shots of the distinctive landscape, shifting skies,and seas that change with the wind.
In a sense, the grim fate of these islanders, presented in drily humorous situations, will affect us all.
Cinetopia:DOC is a monthly doc club bringing audiences together to watch, discuss and connect around the documentary genre and craft. We screen exceptional documentary films alongside filmmaker Q&As or conversations as well as offer a space afterwards for continued discussion and networking in the Cameo bar.
Cinetopia: DOC is supported by Film Hub Scotland, part of the BFI’s Film Audience Network, and funded by Screen Scotland and National Lottery funding from the BFI and the Scottish Documentary Institute and produced by Cinetopia, a hub of activity around filmgoing and filmmaking based in Edinburgh.
Take One Action brings communities together to harness the transformative potential of film and storytelling for collective change.
“Impressively, the film walks that delicate line of both celebrating Mando as an entirely unique place, an island lost in time, and holding it up as a King Canute-esque symbol for humanity’s ongoing fight to hold back the tide.” - Nikki Baughan, Screen Daily
