Out now with The New Yorker & BBC iPlayer.
“An absolute gem of a documentary; sensitively made, touching and tender.”
– David Nicholls, Bestselling Author of One Day
Winner of the BAFTA Cymru Award for Best Short Film, Tribeca Film Festival for Best Documentary Short and one of The Hollywood Reporter’s Top 23 Short Documentaries of 2022. Nominated for The Grierson Award for Best Documentary Short.
Heart Valley follows a day in the life of Wilf Davies, a kind and inquisitive shepherd from the small village of Cellan, Wales. He has never left his valley, eats the same meal every day and works his farm alone, where his family of one hundred black-spotted sheep depend on him.
The film looks at the world through Wilf’s eyes, asking questions about what it is we should truly value.
Directed, produced and cinematography by Christian Cargill, with original music composed by Scottish multi-instrumentalist Erland Cooper.
After winning at Tribeca Film Festival and huge international press, Heart Valley had its first TV broadcast on BBC Two Wales in July 2022. It went on to screen at twenty film festivals across ten countries, winning awards in Germany, France, Mexico, The US, England and Wales. It was later nominated at Camerimage in Poland, the world’s leading cinematography film festival.
A New Yorker Documentary.
“This quiet short sneaks in profound lessons about the importance of simplicity, doing the work we love, and what the meaning of life is.”
– Tribeca Film Festival Jury
“Wilf can be an inspiration to us all.”
– Tom Brook, BBC World
“This short doc deserves to be stumbled upon with an open heart when you’re least expecting it.”
– Cinematic Faves
Heart Valley – IMDb
AWARDS
Winner – BAFTA Cymru Award, Best Short Film
Winner – Tribeca Film Festival, Best Documentary Short
Winner – British Shorts Berlin, Audience Award
Winner – Young Director Award at Cannes Lions, Silver Screen Award
Winner – The Kinsale Shark Awards, Best Documentary Short
Winner – Bolton Film Festival, Best Documentary
Winner – Shorts México, Best International Documentary
Winner – Wales Film Festival, Jury’s Award for Best Short Documentary
Nominated for The Grierson Awards 2023, Best Documentary Short
Nominated for BAFTA Cymru Award 2023, Best Factual Cinematography
Shortlisted for The IDA Documentary Awards
Finalist – The British Short Film Awards
Finalist – The Music+Sound Awards
Finalist – The South London Film Festival
FESTIVALS – Official Selection
CAMERIMAGE – Golden Frog Nominee for Best Short Documentary
PÖFF Shorts – Nominated for Best Live Action Short
RIFFA – Nominated for Best International Short
Meet the Press Film Festival at DOC NYC
GlobeDocs Film Festival
DCEFF Environmental Film Festival
AmDocs Film Festival
FrontDoc International Documentary Festival
San Diego International Film Festival
Shorts Not Pants Festival
Washington West Film Festival
Devour Food Film Festival
CineSol Film Festival
EXHIBITION SCREENINGS
Travel, Bureau Europa (Netherlands 2022)
Wales at Tribeca, Aberystwyth University (Wales 2022)
Staffordshire St Studios (London 2023)
CREDITS
Directed, Written & Edited by Christian Cargill
Produced by Christian Cargill, Lily Wakeley & Kiran Sidhu
Cinematography & Sound by Christian Cargill
Written by Kiran Sidhu
Music Composed by Erland Cooper
Sound Design by Guy Chase
Colour by Max Ferguson-Hook at Time Based Arts
Design by Treyvond Thomas & Daniel Grieshofer
PRESS
The Guardian | The New Yorker | BBC World – Talking Movies Review
BBC News (June 22) | The Hollywood Reporter | BBC News (May 22)
Cinematic Faves Review | BBC Radio Wales | The Rolling Tape Podcast
Sustainable Food Trust | taz – Germany
Farmers Weekly | North Wales Live | Wales Online | Nation Cymru