Wild Summon film-makers on their ‘method directing’ approach to telling a salmon’s story
Film-makers Karni Arieli and Saul Freed took a “method directing” approach to their latest film – an eco-fantasy about the life cycle of a wild salmon.
Pitching Wild Summon to the British Film Institute, the husband-and-wife team took a bold approach: “We went into the office and just said, ‘We want to become fish’.”
Pic: Karni Arieli and Saul Freed. Pic: Sulkybunny
It paid off and they got the gig.
Moving to Iceland to learn how to dive in a bid to get the most authentic portrayal, it was a true family affair, with their eldest son, Yuli, taking on the role of drone cinematographer on the shoot.
The 14-minute animated short, which premiered at Cannes film festival and is executive produced by Don’t Look Up director Adam McKay, went on to be shortlisted for an Oscar, and is up for a BAFTA this weekend.
Hailed as a new form of a nature documentary, it combines animation with live-action underwater photography, anthropomorphising the salmon, and her babies.
Taking us on a journey through rivers and out to sea, our heroine is transposed into the body of an athletic female swimmer.
Freed says it was a new approach they felt compelled to try out: “We’re always looking for fantasy in our work… when you come to think about the life of the salmon as a human, all these situations come to light, which are just brilliant…
“We’ve seen a lot of beautiful natural history documentaries showing nature in its glory. We think we can build on top of that, show a new angle, let people connect to wildlife in a different way.”
Arieli adds: “It’s flipping the narrative on its head, because in the end, we empathise with things that are like us, that are in human form. And so, giving a salmon that you might not look too closely at a human female form, creates a sense of connection and empathy.”
She says getting the animation just right was critical: “Not too fish, not too women, not too live action, not too animation.”
Sadly for the salmon, our close association with them as a source of food doesn’t lead us to naturally connecting with their fight for survival.
Arieli explains: “The salmon is super sensitive, and they’re overlooked because people love to eat them.”
Depicting the negative human impact on their world – in addition to growing threats caused by climate change – was an important part of their message.
Pic: Sulkybunny
Arieli says: “Beyond the 50 predators that the salmon has on this journey from birth to death, man is one of its biggest problems – pollution and farming and overfishing.”
Nearly a quarter of the world’s freshwater fish are at risk of extinction, according to a report published by the International Union for Conservation of Nature late last year.
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Additionally, it showed that wildlife populations have plummeted by 69% since 1970, and more than 41,000 species are under threat of extinction.
A moment in the short where the heroine finds herself confronted with a fish farm is according to Freed “probably one of the most powerful moments in the film” and one which they could give more weight to that moment, thanks to her human-recasting.
Pic: Sulkybunny
Pic: Sulkybunny
Arieli says: “Once you give a fish human form and you put them in a cage and it’s too crowded, you get these other metaphors, not only about how we look at nature but about how we look and treat each other as humans. And that’s another deep meaning within the layers of the film.”
With the self-scored music as the film’s emotional heartbeat, blending Middle Eastern influences with the Nordic landscape visuals, the narration was provided by singer and actress Marianne Faithfull.
Searching for an “iconic voice”, Arieli says she was the perfect casting as an “artist, a mother, a woman, a fighter and a survivor”.
Pic: Sulkybunny
Before plumping for Faithfull, they “went through a lot of different options” including Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, English anthropologist Jane Goodall and Icelandic singer and composer Bjork.
So, what’s the message they hope audiences will take from the film?
Arieli explains: “We’re not trying to tell people what to do or to be preachy… We’re trying to tell people to just look closely at these things, and how we interact with these elements, whether it’s farming or fishing or what we’re eating, and to make small choices, because I think we have to.
“We’re a lot more interconnected than we’re led to believe in the Western world.”
She says the short had a real impact on their youngest son, Teo, who “stopped eating fish and any seafood after making this film with us”.
Pic: Sulkybunny
And while the climate crisis message can sometimes seem a little bleak, Freed says there’s light at the end of the tunnel.
“The story’s hard… but although we do see her die in the end, the last shot of the film is the new generation, a new baby, so for us, it’s a happy end.”
With a potential eco-series in the pipeline, Freed and Arieli are philosophical about their BAFTA hopes this weekend, borrowing a metaphor from the fish star of their film: “It’s all about the journey.”
Wild Summon can be streamed for free on Bafta’s YouTube until 20 February.
Watch the full interview on The Climate Show with Tom Heap, Saturday and Sunday at 3.30 and 7.30pm on Sky News.
Despite The Who’s Quadrophenia being set over 60 years ago, Pete Townshend’s themes of identity, mental health, and modern masculinity are just as relevant today.
The album is having a renaissance as Pete Townshend’s Quadrophenia A Mod ballet is being brought to life via dance at Sadler’s Wells East, and Sky News has an exclusive first look.
As Townshend puts it, the album he wrote is “perfect” for the stage.
Pete Townshend
“My wife Rachel did the orchestration for me, and as soon as I heard it I said to her it would make a fabulous ballet and we never really let that go,” he tells Sky News.
“Heavy percussion, concussive sequences. They’re explosive moments. They’re also romantic movement moments.”
If you identify with the demographics of Millennial, Gen Y or Gen Z, you might not be familiar with The Who and Mod culture.
But in post-war Britain the Mods were a cultural phenomenon characterised by fashion, music, and of course, scooters. The young rebels were seen as a counter-culture to the establishment and The Who, with Roger Daltry’s lead vocals and Pete Townshend’s writing, were the soundtrack.
Quadrophenia the album is widely regarded as an essay on the British adolescent experience at the time, focusing on the life of fictional protagonist Jimmy – a young Mod struggling with his sanity, self-doubt, and alienation.
Townshend sets the rock opera in 1965 but thinks its themes of identity, mental health, and modern masculinity are just as relevant today.
He says: “The phobias and the restrictions and the unwritten laws about how young men should behave. The ground that they broke, that we broke because I was a part of it.
“Men were letting go of [the] wartime-related, uniform-related stance that if I wear this kind of outfit it makes me look like a man.”
Paris Fitzpatrick and Pete Townshend. Pic: Johan Persson
This struggle of modern masculinity and identity appears to be echoing today as manosphere influencers like Andrew Tate, incel culture, and Netflix’s Adolescence make headlines.
For dancer Paris Fitzpatrick, who takes on the lead role of Jimmy, the story resonates.
Paris Fitzpatrick, who takes on the lead role of Jimmy in the ballet
“I think there’s a connection massively and I think there may even be a little more revival in some way,” he tells Sky News.
“I love that myself. I love non-conforming to gender norms and typical masculinity; I think it’s great to challenge things.”
Despite the album being written before he was born, the dancer says he was familiar with the genre already.
“I actually did an art GCSE project about Mods and rockers and Quadrophenia,” he says.
“I think we’ll be able to bring it to new audiences and hopefully, maybe people will be inspired to to learn more about their music and the whole cultural movement of the early 60s.”
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In 1979, the album was adapted into a film directed by Franc Roddam starring Ray Winstone and Sting but Townshend admits because the film missed key points he is “not a big fan”.
“What it turned out to be in the movie was a story about culture, about social scenario and less about really the specifics of mental illness and how that affects young people,” he adds, also complimenting Roddam’s writing for the film.
Perhaps a testament to Pete Townshend’s creativity, Quadrophenia started as an album, was successfully adapted to film and now it will hit the stage as a contemporary ballet.
It appears that over six decades later Mod culture is still cool and their issues still relatable.
Quadrophenia, a Mod Ballet will tour to Plymouth Theatre Royal from 28 May to 1 June 2025, Edinburgh Festival Theatre from 10 to 14 June 2025 and the Mayflower, Southampton from 18 to 21 June 2025 before having its official opening at Sadler’s Wells Theatre, London on 24 June running to 13 July 2025 and then visiting The Lowry, Salford from 15 to 19 July 2025.
Russell Brand has been charged with rape and two counts of sexual assault between 1999 and 2005.
The Metropolitan Police say the 50-year-old comedian, actor and author has also been charged with one count of oral rape and one count of indecent assault.
The charges relate to four women.
He is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Friday 2 May.
Police have said Brand is accused of raping a woman in the Bournemouth area in 1999 and indecently assaulting a woman in the Westminster area of London in 2001.
He is also accused of orally raping and sexually assaulting a woman in Westminster in 2004.
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Ashna Hurynag discusses Russell Brand’s charges
The fourth charge alleges that a woman was sexually assaulted in Westminster between 2004 and 2005.
Police began investigating Brand, from Oxfordshire, in September 2023 after receiving a number of allegations.
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The comedian has denied the accusations and said he has “never engaged in non-consensual activity”.
He added in a video on X: “Of course, I am now going to have the opportunity to defend these charges in court, and I’m incredibly grateful for that.”
Metropolitan Police Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy, who is leading the investigation, said: “The women who have made reports continue to receive support from specially trained officers.
“The Met’s investigation remains open and detectives ask anyone who has been affected by this case, or anyone who has any information, to come forward and speak with police.”
Tom Cruise has paid tribute to Val Kilmer, wishing his Top Gun co-star “well on the next journey”.
Cruise, speaking at the CinemaCon film event in Las Vegas on Thursday, asked for a moment’s silence to reflect on the “wonderful” times shared with the star, whom he called a “dear friend”.
Kilmer, who died of pneumonia on Tuesday aged 65, rocketed to fame starring alongside Cruise in the 1986 blockbuster Top Gun, playing Tom ‘Iceman’ Kazansky, a rival fighter pilot to Cruise’s character Maverick.
Tom Cruise said ‘I wish you well on the next journey’. Pic: AP
Val Kilmer in 2017. Pic: AP
His last part was a cameo role in the 2022 blockbuster sequel Top Gun: Maverick.
Cruise, on stage at Caesars Palace on Thursday, said: “I’d like to honour a dear friend of mine, Val Kilmer. I can’t tell you how much I admire his work, how grateful and honoured I was when he joined Top Gun and came back later for Top Gun: Maverick.
“I think it would be really nice if we could have a moment together because he loved movies and he gave a lot to all of us. Just kind of think about all the wonderful times that we had with him.
“I wish you well on the next journey.”
The moment of silence followed a string of tributes from Hollywood figures including Cher, Francis Ford Coppola, Antonio Banderas and Michelle Monaghan.
Kilmer’s daughter Mercedes told the New York Times on Wednesday that the actor had died from pneumonia.
Tom Cruise at Caesars Palace on Thursday. Pic: AP
Diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014, Kilmer discussed his illness and recovery in his 2020 memoir Your Huckleberry and Amazon Prime documentary Val.
He underwent radiation and chemotherapy treatments for the disease and also had a tracheostomy which damaged his vocal cords and permanently gave him a raspy speaking voice.
Kilmer played Batman in the 1995 film Batman Forever and received critical acclaim for his portrayal of rock singer Jim Morrison in the 1991 movie The Doors.
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He also starred in True Romance and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, as well as playing criminal Chris Shiherlis in Michael Mann’s 1995 movie Heat and Doc Holliday in the 1993 film Tombstone.
In 1988 he married British actress Joanne Whalley, whom he met while working on fantasy adventure Willow.
The couple had two children before divorcing in 1996.
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