About the Film

Addressing climate change is the existential question of our time, but climate change and bio-diversity loss are two sides to the same coin. The Land of Azaba is the first feature documentary on the subject of ecological restoration, and it is set in one of the world’s first “hot spots” for increasing and maintaining bio-diversity, Campanarios de Azaba Nature Reserve in Western Spain. The Land of Azaba immerses the viewer in a magical world where humans and wildlife work together to restore the largest remaining tract of wild nature in western Europe. The survival of many rare and endangered species, including ancient oaks, insects, vultures, aurochs and horses, is at stake.

Director's Statement

I wanted to make The Land of Azaba because people need stories of hope and success to overcome despair. In contrast to the alarming ecological doomsday news we receive daily, The Land of Azaba has an exciting and optimistic premise: humanity can turn back the tide of mass extinction and restore planet earth back to ecological balance. It does, however, require a major shift in ethical-cultural perspective. The film’s pace is leisurely to evoke the cycles of nature. We closely observe the radical new experiment of ecological restoration as it unfolds, with the promise of bringing back our degraded planet to a balance that supports all living things. The film seduces audiences into the wonders of the natural world while communicating what biodiversity is, what eco-restoration is, and why they matter to all of us.