A Community of Life

The nature film ‘Een Gemeenschap van Leven’ broke records at the Wildlife Festival in Rotterdam: it achieved the highest audience score ever there. Filmmaker Rik van der Linden and nature philosopher Matthijs Schouten place the oak processionary caterpillar in a broader perspective, as part of a rich ecosystem around the pedunculate oak. Birds, insects, micro-organisms and the oak processionary caterpillar together form a community of life. The film shows how man and nature are closely intertwined. The documentary also prompts reflection: what does our reflex to combat say about how we look at nature? And what changes if we choose coexistence instead of intervention? By seeing the caterpillar as a link in a larger ecological whole, space is created for more sustainable and thoughtful nature management. Not against, but with nature. There is an introduction and after-discussion in collaboration with Provincie Antwerpen, Man & Wetenschap Lier