A Journey Through the Seasons

When I lived in Prague, I lived south of the main city in a neighborhood called Braník on the east bank of the Vltava river. Our apartment was up on a forested hill. By merely stepping out our front door, I was enmeshed in forest. I miss those walks to and from the tram, grocery store, and gym. Walking home at night through the dark forest and seeing all of the tiny houses dotting the hills is a feature of life that I miss dearly.

Autumn in Prague is a sight to behold. I witnessed it most clearly in the forest behind our house, which constitutes the entire first half of the film below. I didn’t intend to make this film when I first started filming the changing leaves. I was so compelled by the drama in this forest that I started shooting and it became habit to journey out behind the apartment with my camera. Then the leaves were gone and I continued.

I hope anyone who watches will find this film calming, and perhaps a little melancholic. It is, after all, about the inevitable passage of time, but also the drama of nature. Some find this kind of fixation on the beauty of nature to be banal, and maybe it is. Still, I cannot shake this adoration for the touches of nature and I believe it is something to which all art aspires in one way or another.

The music comes from the incomparable Max Richter, whose album “Memoryhouse” was the soundtrack of my life while I lived there.

Hope you enjoy,