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Co-presented by DCEFF and AFI Silver as part of their European Union Film Showcase

Against the backdrop of Iceland’s magnificent landscape — a rugged island filled with winding roads amidst a majestic tundra — a marriage falls apart, threatening to fracture a loving family. Fisherman Magnús (Sverrir Guðnason) has just moved out of the house he shares with his visual artist wife, Anna (Saga Garðarsdóttir), and their three children, Ída and twins Þorgils and Grímur (all three played by the real children of filmmaker Hlynur Pálmason, GODLAND). The high school sweethearts have drifted apart as of late, despite Magnús’ hope for reconciliation, though they still spend time together for the sake of the kids. Working with a set-up that could easily veer toward melodrama, Pálmason pens a surprisingly sensitive and poignant treatise on the ties that bind, imbuing the scenario with a warm sense of humor and a charming thread of magical realism that combine into a powerful climax.

The gorgeous cinematography, lensed in 35mm by Pálmason himself, deftly renders the grandeur of the Icelandic setting. All of this is anchored by the compelling, sly performances from all five principal players, though special mention goes to the various critters that live with the family — chickens, cows, horses and one exceptional sheepdog named Panda, who won the coveted Palm Dog award at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.

Co-presented by DCEFF and AFI Silver as part of their European Union Film Showcase

Against the backdrop of Iceland’s magnificent landscape — a rugged island filled with winding roads amidst a majestic tundra — a marriage falls apart, threatening to fracture a loving family. Fisherman Magnús (Sverrir Guðnason) has just moved out of the house he shares with his visual artist wife, Anna (Saga Garðarsdóttir), and their three children, Ída and twins Þorgils and Grímur (all three played by the real children of filmmaker Hlynur Pálmason, GODLAND). The high school sweethearts have drifted apart as of late, despite Magnús’ hope for reconciliation, though they still spend time together for the sake of the kids. Working with a set-up that could easily veer toward melodrama, Pálmason pens a surprisingly sensitive and poignant treatise on the ties that bind, imbuing the scenario with a warm sense of humor and a charming thread of magical realism that combine into a powerful climax.

The gorgeous cinematography, lensed in 35mm by Pálmason himself, deftly renders the grandeur of the Icelandic setting. All of this is anchored by the compelling, sly performances from all five principal players, though special mention goes to the various critters that live with the family — chickens, cows, horses and one exceptional sheepdog named Panda, who won the coveted Palm Dog award at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.

Co-presented by DCEFF and AFI Silver as part of their European Union Film Showcase

Against the backdrop of Iceland’s magnificent landscape — a rugged island filled with winding roads amidst a majestic tundra — a marriage falls apart, threatening to fracture a loving family. Fisherman Magnús (Sverrir Guðnason) has just moved out of the house he shares with his visual artist wife, Anna (Saga Garðarsdóttir), and their three children, Ída and twins Þorgils and Grímur (all three played by the real children of filmmaker Hlynur Pálmason, GODLAND). The high school sweethearts have drifted apart as of late, despite Magnús’ hope for reconciliation, though they still spend time together for the sake of the kids. Working with a set-up that could easily veer toward melodrama, Pálmason pens a surprisingly sensitive and poignant treatise on the ties that bind, imbuing the scenario with a warm sense of humor and a charming thread of magical realism that combine into a powerful climax.

The gorgeous cinematography, lensed in 35mm by Pálmason himself, deftly renders the grandeur of the Icelandic setting. All of this is anchored by the compelling, sly performances from all five principal players, though special mention goes to the various critters that live with the family — chickens, cows, horses and one exceptional sheepdog named Panda, who won the coveted Palm Dog award at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.

We are thrilled to be teaming up with the National Academy of Sciences to offer a free screening of our 2025 Shared Earth Foundation Award winner Out of Plain Sight.

This screening will be followed by a conversation with co-director Rosanna Xia and several scientists featured in the film: Dr. David Valentine (UC Santa Barbara), Dr. Alissa Deming (Pacific Marine Mammal Center), Dr. Eunha Hoh (San Diego State University), and Dr. Lihini Aluwihare (Scripps Institution of Oceanography).

A Co-presentation between DCEFF and the AFI Silver as part of their European Union Film Showcase

For over a century, a ginkgo tree, standing sentinel in the garden of Philipps University of Marburg in Germany, experiences its surroundings — but how and what it experiences is a mystery. Every day, students, professors and staff pass by the tree, graze its bark, recline beneath its shade. Ildikó Enyedi’s profound scientific epic locates three such passersby, separated by generations. In 2020, a professor of neuroscience, stranded and isolated on the COVID-abandoned campus, begins to conduct experiments on the tree’s sensorial faculties. In 1972, a first-year student, inspired by a romantic dalliance, cares for a sensitive geranium; and, in 1908, the university’s first female student discovers a new way of seeing plants through photography. Enyedi excavates these stories from the ginkgo tree’s roots, like living fossils that have implanted themselves into its being.

The cast is led by Tony Leung Chiu-wai (IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE, CHUNGKING EXPRESS) and Léa Seydoux (THE BEAST, BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOUR), as two preternaturally sensitive and curious modern researchers who wish to understand the mind of plants. Their inquiries open a portal into an expanded sense of time and connection, uniting their story with those who came before them and with the plants who have borne witness all the while.

A Co-presentation between DCEFF and the AFI Silver as part of their European Union Film Showcase

For over a century, a ginkgo tree, standing sentinel in the garden of Philipps University of Marburg in Germany, experiences its surroundings — but how and what it experiences is a mystery. Every day, students, professors and staff pass by the tree, graze its bark, recline beneath its shade. Ildikó Enyedi’s profound scientific epic locates three such passersby, separated by generations. In 2020, a professor of neuroscience, stranded and isolated on the COVID-abandoned campus, begins to conduct experiments on the tree’s sensorial faculties. In 1972, a first-year student, inspired by a romantic dalliance, cares for a sensitive geranium; and, in 1908, the university’s first female student discovers a new way of seeing plants through photography. Enyedi excavates these stories from the ginkgo tree’s roots, like living fossils that have implanted themselves into its being.

The cast is led by Tony Leung Chiu-wai (IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE, CHUNGKING EXPRESS) and Léa Seydoux (THE BEAST, BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOUR), as two preternaturally sensitive and curious modern researchers who wish to understand the mind of plants. Their inquiries open a portal into an expanded sense of time and connection, uniting their story with those who came before them and with the plants who have borne witness all the while.

March 19-28, 2026, the Environmental Film Festival in the Nation’s Capital (DCEFF) returns to venues throughout the DC Metro Area. Stay tuned for exciting announcements early in 2026.