Fjallferð
2025 · 17m · United States
Directed by Jesse Smolan, Ollie Maine Smith, Josh Mitchell, Jimayu Fairmont
Genres: documentary
Tones: contemplative, tender
Three young filmmakers spend six days embedded with Icelandic farming families during réttir, the annual autumn sheep round-up in the highlands.
Picked by Zoe
The scouts
Four directors, six days, zero manufactured conflict—and somehow that restraint is the most subversive choice here, a documentary that trusts observation over narrative manipulation in a landscape built for the opposite.
The film situates itself in a lineage of observational cinema that stretches from the Maysles through to contemporary Icelandic nonfiction; the restraint and formal clarity suggest filmmakers acutely aware of what précis work demands.
The decision to embed four filmmakers as witnesses rather than architects—letting the rhythm of réttir dictate pacing instead of cutting to it—is what transforms what could've been travel footage into something that actually breathes with the work.
Reviews
‘Fjallferð’ Finds Song, Storm and Community Strength in the Mountains of Iceland’s Annual Sheep Round-Up If you love enchanting landscapes and the beauty of nature, as well as the risks that come with it, from sudden snowstorms and heavy downpours to extreme heat, you’ll definitely love Fjallferð.
Festivals
- Newport Beach Film Festival 2025
- HollyShorts Film Festival 2026