Haulout
2022 · 25m · UK
Directed by Maxim Arbugaev, Evgenia Arbugaeva
Genres: documentary
Tones: contemplative, melancholic, surreal
Marine biologist Maxim Chakilev spends months alone in a remote Arctic hut waiting for the annual walrus haulout—a mass migration of up to 100,000 walruses forced onto shrinking beaches as melting sea ice disappears, resulting in deadly overcrowding and stampedes.
Picked by Zoe
The scouts
Arctic scientist alone with 100,000 walruses, shot through cracks in a hut — Oscar-nominated for the right reasons, the sound design alone is worth the runtime. Easily one of the strongest pitches in this stack.
The Arbugaevs build the entire film around what the camera cannot see — sound only, until the shocking visual reveal of 100,000 walruses; Oscar-nominated and worth every breath of acclaim. A masterclass in withholding.
Twenty-five minutes building dread through thunderous walrus sound alone — shot from inside a cramped hut through wall cracks because the animals are frightened by foreign smells — before revealing 100,000 walruses on a shrinking beach. That sound-first reveal structure is one of the great formal achievements of recent docs and the Oscar nomination confirms it.
Reviews
Documentary filmmaking has rarely been this utterly astounding cinematographically... the extraordinary documentary of the Oscars' Documentary Short Subject category in 2023, and an unmissable piece of documentary filmmaking for the 21st century.
A melancholy tribute to Chakilev's dedication and further evidence of the damage the climate crisis is causing.
Festivals
- Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale Shorts) 2022
- Palm Springs International ShortFest 2022
- AFI FEST 2022, Grand Jury Prize
- Hot Docs International Documentary Film Festival 2022
- BFI London Film Festival 2022
- Academy Awards 2023, Nominated
- IDA Documentary Awards 2022, Winner