A real-life adventure into nature’s unknown
Follow ecologist Matty Hannon on an incredible solo adventure as he leaves his life in the city behind for the great outdoors. Surfing his way along the west coast of the Americas, his ambitious voyage takes him from the Alaskan wilderness to the tip of Patagonia. But just as the dangers and isolation of such a trip take their toll, he meets the girl of his dreams, a permaculture farmer, Heather Hillier, who throws caution to the wind and joins Matty on his 50,000km odyssey.
Riding south on motorbike and horseback, worlds collide as the duo encounter Zapatista rebels, Amazonian shamans and Mapuche leaders whose salient words crack the adventurers’ cultural veneer, leaving them with many existential questions. Shot over 16 years, the result is a beautiful documentation of the untouched natural world that few get to experience, offering a thrilling new perspective on our place within it.
Kaleidoscope Entertainment is delighted to announce that the award-winning adventure documentary The Road to Patagonia will be in UK & Irish cinemas from 27th June. As Matty says; “THE ROAD TO PATAGONIA is a physical and spiritual odyssey to better understand our place in nature. Not only do I believe in the power of adventure to coax us out of our digital lives – to reconnect ourselves with the Earth and each other – but I believe in the power of an emotive documentary, an immersive experience that inspires the audience into self-reflection and action.
As a verité documentary THE ROAD TO PATAGONIA includes 16 years of footage from my life. Some moments were difficult to include, being so personal and vulnerable. However, overall they were incredibly privileged times to have documented, and despite investigating themes of colonialism and globa lisation, the film aims to instill an uplifting sense of hope and positivity in the audience. In a way, I hope it’s a small antidote to the heaviness of the world in recent years.
Some of the interviewees included in the film speak to the harsh consequences of an ancient paradigm conflicting with the dominant modern system. Indeed we live in polarising times; the mainstream west still embedded in a Cartesian philosophy that says humans are separate from and superior to nature, all the while accepting the ideas of dualism; of man vs nature, man vs woman, white vs black, right vs left etc. THE ROAD TO PATAGONIA investigates a philosophy born epochs before René Descartes or even the Abrahamic religions, a complex web of life and ideas that are still thriving today, and it argues that to truly bring ourselves into harmony with the natural world, we must slow down, and return to seeing humanity as a part of it.”
The film has received widespread acclaim as the “Australian Film of the Year” (The Movie Guys), quickly becoming an AUD $1 million box office sensation in the country. Awards so far include Best Film at Byron Bay Film Festival, Best Documentary at Paris Surf Skate Snow Film Festival, Jury awards at Maui Film Festival and Surf Film Festival, and Audience Choice awards at Melbourne Documentary Film Festival and Florida Surf Film Festival. The Road to Patagonia invites you to take a break from digital life and reconnect with yourself, the Earth and each other.
