100 stories from the hiking route

2009 – The main award of the Matsalu Nature Film Festival was given to ‘The Old Man and the Elk’

Information

Topic

People and nature

Coordinates

Long-Lat WGS 84

Latitude: 58.7523853

Longitude: 23.8922868

L-EST 97

x: 6512539.8
y: 493765.2

Location

Penijõe-Aegviidu Hiking route

"The Old Man and the Elk", shot on the Kasari river flood-meadow, is the first Estonian film to win the main award of the Matsalu Nature Film Festival. The documentary by Joosep Matjus tells a story of the director’s grandfather Harri Põldsam and his relationship with elks.
Harri is an old hunter and nature-lover who has studied elks and their inner life for over 30 years. Walking with elks around the flood-meadow and talking to them in ‘Elkish’ is a special ritual for Harri. From his experience with elks, he knows the exact line, crossing which will destroy the bond and scare the elk away. All animals that can be seen in the film have been free to come and go when and where they please.
The Matsalu Nature Film Festival in Lihula is named after the national park. The first festival took place in 2003. In addition to modern nature films, the opening event of the festival also featured the oldest Estonian nature films ‘The Dredging of Kasari River’ (1931) and ‘Vilsandi Bird Country’ (1937).
The Matsalu Nature Film Festival has become an international event; in addition to Lihula, films are also shown in Haapsalu and Tallinn. The annual festival features a selection of new nature films from around the world.