Description

Unique in the genre of exploration and adventure films, ICE PEOPLE takes you on one of the earth’s most seductive journeys—Antarctica. Emmy-winning documentary filmmaker Anne Aghion spent four months “on the ice” with modern-day polar explorers, to find out what drives dedicated researchers to leave the world behind in pursuit of science, and to capture the true experience of living and working in this extreme environment. And, as it turns out, the film also witnesses one of the most significant discoveries about climate change in recent Antarctic science.
 
Intense public focus on climate change has turned the shores of Antarctica into a new tourist mecca, making the earth’s coldest continent the hot place to be. But, inland from the penguins and ice floes is a magical Antarctica of volcanoes, boulder-strewn valleys and ominous glaciers. Only a small number of scientific research teams get there, braving severe conditions to learn about our planet’s history, and make predictions about our future.
 
ICE PEOPLE heads out into the “deep field” with noted geologists Allan Ashworth and Adam Lewis, and two undergrad scientists-in-the-making, where they scour across hundreds of miles to find tiny, critical signs of ancient life. Their findings would give the first evidence of a green Antarctica over 14 million years ago, that disappeared with a sudden shift in the temperature of the continent.
 
The most authentic film about life on the ice since the trailblazing expeditions to Antarctica chronicled nearly a century ago, ICE PEOPLE conveys the vast beauty, the claustrophobia, the excitement and the stillness of an experience set to nature’s rhythm.

REVIEWS

"Covers a wide spectrum of what it’s like to live and work at an Antarctic research station and field camp. In many ways the viewer may feel like they’re right there amongst the grittiness of McMurdo and conversely the majesty that is Antarctica; all the while imagining themselves exposed to the fierceness of the wind or the constant drone of a diesel engine somewhere in the background."
—Will Brubaker, Vagabumming.com

Critics Pick! "Immersive, mesmerizing"
—New York Magazine

"Instantly compelling... Ice People sticks in the mind."
—Nathan Lee, The New York Times

"It’s an earthbound, stubbornly unromantic depiction of Antarctica’s modern-day explorers"
—Darrell Hartman, ArtForum

4 stars! "Majestically shot...the film is a uniquely meditative, psychological portrait of individuals who approach scientific exploration with the passion and fervor of artists."
— Andrew Grant, TimeOut New York

"A compelling portrait of the most inhospitable terrain on Earth..."
—Neil Pedley, IFC: The Independent Film Channel

"Moody, atmospheric and often refreshingly down-to-earth, it's not quite like any previous film about Antarctica. The director, Anne Aghion, likes to fill the screen with the kinds of lonely landscapes that David Lean once used to suggest another kind of desert."
—John Hartl, The Seattle Times

"The movie... gives viewers a glimpse of a side of science that is rarely seen."
—Edyta Zielinska, Scientist.com

“A compelling human story that serves as a counterpoint to the iconic Antarctic images of penguins and ice…ICE PEOPLE weaves a meditative spell that lingers long after the movie ends.”
—Carolyn Gramling, EARTH Magazine

"An intriguing slice-of-life that observes the area's staggeringly beautiful and imposing landscapes and the unique challenges experienced by those who work there. Pic should score broadcast sales in numerous territories."
—Dennis Harvey, Variety

More info, clips and reviews @ www.icepeople.com (see above).

Cast

Featuring Professors Allan Ashworth and Adam R. Lewis, of North Dakota State University, and students Kelly Gorz & Andrew Podoll.

Festivals

The Explorers Club (NYC 2009)
Anthology Film Archives (NYC 2009)
Sundance Channel (2009)
Dietrich Theater's Spring Film Festival (PA 2009)
Cornell University (April 2009)
Notre Dame: DeBartolo Performing Arts Center (2009)
Fargo Film Festival (ND 2009)
Cape Ann Community Cinema (MA 2009)
The Screen (NM 2009)
The Grand Illusion Cinema (Seattle WA 2009)
The Gene Siskel Film Center (Chicago IL 2009)
Wexner Center for the Arts (OH 2009)
Anchorage Museum of Art (AK 2009)
Exploratorium Screening & Webcast (San Francisco 2009)
Rencontres Internationales Sciences et Cinémas (France 2009)
Arte TV (Europe 2008-09)
Amazonas Film Festival (Brazil 2008)
McMurdo, Antarctica (2008)
The Film Society of Lincoln Center: Independents Night (NYC 2008)
PARISCIENCE (Paris, France 2008)
Vancouver International Film Festival (2008)
San Francisco International Film Festival (2008)
Jerusalem International Film Festival (2008)
Scinema Festival (2008)

Production Credits & Notes

Directed by Anne Aghion
Produced by Benoît Gryspeerdt & Anne Aghion
Edited by Nadia Ben Rachid
Cinematography by Sylvestre Guidi
Sound Recording by Richard Fleming
Original score by Laurent Petitgand
Sound Design by Roland Duboué & Béatrice Wick
Sound Mix by Nathalie Vidal

A co-production of Dry Valleys Productions, ARTE France, and ITVS International, in association with Sundance Channel.

Produced with a grant from the National Science Foundation's Antarctic Artists and Writers Program, with major support from the European Commission Directorate General for Research. Additional support from the Centre National de la Cinématographie, the Conseil Régional de la Région Rhône-Alpes, the Conseil Général de l'Ardèche, the SACEM, RTBF (Belgian Television) & SBS (Australia). Developed under the auspices of Eurodoc, with funding from the Media Program's New Talent fund of the European Commission.