Sápmi: Culture below zero

INTRODUCTION

This project is a documentary developed within an academic setting, yet with a clear intention of achieving professional quality. It focuses on the Sami people, an indigenous community living in northern Norway, Sweden, and Finland, as well as on the Kola Peninsula in Russia.

The documentary aims to gain an intimate understanding of their way of life, traditions, culture, and identity within their territory, Sápmi. At the same time, it seeks to highlight the conflicts and challenges currently facing the Sami people—particularly those affecting their territory, their way of life, and the preservation of their culture and traditions.

The goal is to raise the profile of a little-known indigenous community and reveal a reality that often remains hidden from the outside world. We aim to do this from an intimate, human perspective—listening to the members of the community and seeking to understand how they live and how they face these changes and challenges.

THEMATIC AREAS

1 - Who are the Sami? To define the Sami world by highlighting its value before it was threatened, and to connect with the issues facing the Sami people.

2 - The crack in the earth: the conflicts the Sami people are facing due to the construction of wind farms, mines, roads, and other projects on their territory. Although presented as progress or sustainable solutions, these projects can affect their land and way of life. This puts traditional activities—such as reindeer herding—at risk, and with them, part of their culture and identity.

3 - “We are the locals!”: viewing the region's challenges from the perspective of the people who live there and experience its changes firsthand. The climate emergency is transforming the natural world and affecting their way of life—a reality in which the altered natural environment itself becomes a new threat.

4 - The price of the future: the gap between decisions made by European institutions—such as those in Brussels—and the reality of the Sami people. Faced with these conflicts, the Sami seek to protect their culture and ensure that future generations can keep their identity alive. Education and language thus become tools for resistance, for moving forward, and for building their own future.

WHAT YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS WILL BE USED FOR

All contributions will go entirely towards making the documentary possible, providing the resources needed to achieve a professional-quality result.

• Rental of technical equipment (lenses and lighting)

• Transport and logistics

• Diets for the crew

• Post-production (editing, sound, color)

The goal is to optimize every contribution to ensure the best possible result on screen.

CREW

One of the project leads, Bernat Solivelles, has participated in various similar professional-level projects, such as Més Enllà (Del Taller)—a documentary about the artist Cesc Abad—the short film Mar de Cendres (largely funded through a crowdfunding campaign), and cinematic-style videos for social media.

Jaume Clot, the other person responsible for the project, has directed content for municipal councils, worked on major international filming projects, and handled the production and editing of the British documentary CHAMPION Lyla Rae, among other projects. Currently, he's doing an internship at 3Cat.

Another member of the project's technical staff, Joaquim Polanco—creator and head of the audiovisual production company XimoProds—has also worked on various professional projects across different styles. Examples include the short film En Fa Major, advertising campaigns for brands such as The North Face and Merrell, the corporate video for CB Vilanova’s 40th anniversary, and the video for RuralTrail2025.

PROVISIONAL TIMELINE

This is the planned timeline for the development of the project once the campaign has ended. The dates shown are tentative and may vary depending on the progress of the project.

MORE INFORMATION

If you would like to follow the project more closely and keep up with its progress, you can follow us on our social media: @vigiadocumental

For more information, please send an email to [email protected].