Escapade Media has come on board to take international sales rights to ‘Follow the Rain,’ a feature-length documentary about unknown species of mushroom that has enjoyed theatrical release in its native Australia.
The film is directed and produced by Catherine Marciniak and follows Marciniak and Stephen Axford, her partner in production company Planet Fungi, as they explore forests and wetlands charting some of the millions of undocumented forms of mushroom, fungus and mycelium. The pair take a physical journey, following the rain in one of Australia’s wettest years to discover what fungal stories emerge and come out with a “fungi feast.”
The completed film, with a score by composers Romano Crivici and Carla Thackrah, combines imagery from mushroom time-lapses, adventures in majestic forests where fungi is everywhere, dramatic weather in remote landscapes and the visual appeal of a road trip.
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“This fungi adventure takes us into some of the oldest landscapes in Australia, to explore the critical role fungi play on earth and how they can help humans in the fight against climate change. It includes a journey into the world of zombie fungus hunting, a dig into the hidden trading deals between fungi and trees, a 10-year investigation to name a new species and the discovery of the fungal life of a desert,” said Marcinak and Axford.
The pair also make the claim that fungi are not only protecting humans against the worst impact of climate change, they say that without fungi forests would not exist.
Partly funded by the non-profit organization Documentary Australia and by crowdfunding, the film cost close to $1 million to produce.
It had theatrical screenings at the Bangalow Film Festival and at the Dorrigo Old Gazette Theatre in March and is set for further limited runs in Australia through June. Escapade is planning to launch it internationally at MIPCOM In October.
“Catherine and Stephen’s film is exquisite and includes some of the most incredible natural history footage, I have ever seen. The interest in fungi is worldwide and growing every day,” said Natalie Lawley, MD of Escapade.
“A decade in the making, [‘Follow the Rain’] is a labor of love that finds a perfect advocate in Escapade, renowned for championing authentic narratives about our natural world,” said Marciniak.
Follow the Rain (documentary)
Planet Fungi