A Plot of Rising Ground

Across the United Kingdom, a movement has been slowly churning away. Fields are being returned to nature, rivers are being unblocked, bogs are being rewet, and species long absent from the landscape are beginning to find their way back. Rewilding is a form of ecological restoration that allows natural processes to return with as little active management as possible, and govern their own journey. Embedded in the term is a desire to see people themselves rediscover their inner wildness. “A Plot of Rising Ground” is a documentary that explores this growing movement across the country, tracing its origins, charting its present momentum, and giving a glimpse as to who will carry it forward into the future. Filmed during the summer of 2025, the documentary brings together a diverse range of voices from across the rewilding world. Practitioners working directly with the land sit down in front of the camera, alongside academics whose research is shaping the field. Pioneers who helped establish the movement take the audience to the site of their original vision, while NGOs figures driving policy and public engagement tell the public more about their arena. Spanning a wide range of ages and scales of operation, from small community projects to vast landscape interventions, the film captures the breadth and ambition of what rewilding in Britain has become. At its heart, the documentary is a portrait of people in relationship with the natural world, united by a belief that recovery is possible. It asks not only what rewilding is, but what it means, and who gets to define it. The current phase of the project is post-production, with the editing process underway. Working from a rich archive of interview and location footage gathered over the summer, the focus is now on shaping the material into a cohesive and compelling narrative for audiences both within and beyond the university.