“I had three chairs in my house.
One for solitude, two for friendship, three for society.”
THE STORY
Walden: Life in the Woods is a radical, western re-imagining of Henry David Thoreau’s classic "Walden." Taking place over twenty-four hours, the film interlaces Solitude, Friendship and Society: three contemporary narratives about the trappings of modern life and the unlikely transcendentalists who dream dangerously of escape.
In "Solitude," eighty-year old Alice plays detective of the soul, wading through her murky past, trying to uncover a core memory, which leads her to attempt to break free from the walls of her dementia—and her nursing home. In “Friendship,” Luke leads his partner Guy on a surreal journey into the Rocky Mountains as well as into parts of himself he dares not confront. In “Society,” family man Ramirez moves through the morass of a middle class existence—mortgage, health insurance, failing home appliances—and spends a biblically hilarious day navigating the bureaucratic inferno of civilized society.
Throughout the day, the ordinariness of our characters’ minutes ticking by collides with sudden sublime and surreal interruptions. As Thoreau knew, intuition comes in glimpses and flashes, fits and starts. The three narratives have literal intersection, yet they merge most pointedly in the climax of the film in a moment of spiritual epiphany at three different “ponds." In moments of crisis, the characters confront what Thoreau thought was ultimately more profound than the wilderness: our inner wild.
“The true harvest of my daily life is as intangible and indescribable as the tints of morning or evening. ”
THE CAST
Demián Bichir - Ramirez
Lynn Cohen - Alice
Erik Hellman - Guy
Anthony LoVerde - Luke
T.J. Miller - Charlie
Chris Sullivan - Tony
Jamie Horton - Edelberg
Amber Gray - Melinda
“If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put foundations under them.”
THE FILMMAKERS
Alex Harvey
Director
Adam Chanzit
Screenwriter
Laura Goldhamer
Composer, Animator, Builder
Shane Boris
Producer
Mitch Dickman
Producer
Sofiya Akilova
Co-Producer
Payton Dunham
Co-Producer
Alison Greenberg
Co-Producer
Patrick Hackett
Co-Producer
Michael Haskins
Co-Producer
![Miklos Buk [hsc]Cinematographer](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/582d40bc579fb364fb89cd6d/1479691169163-UQY0F1U5ZNNDPIFT5UE4/static1.squarespace-5.jpg)
Miklos Buk [hsc]
Cinematographer
Eytan İpeker
Editor
Ian Olds
Supervising Editor
Maite Perez-Nievas
Production Designer
Demián Bichir
Executive Producer
John Caulkins
Executive Producer
John Finn
Executive Producer
Jessica Green
Executive Producer
Karl Kister
Executive Producer
Scott Macaulay
Executive Producer
“The universe is wider than our views of it.”
NEWS
Whistler Film Festival 2018 Interview: WALDEN LIFE IN THE WOODS director Alex Harvey
Get Reel Movies writer Jason Whyte asks our director Alex Harvey why Whistler is the perfect Canadian premiere for WALDEN. Read more here.
huffington post includes walden in its Denver Film fest favorites
Huffington Post contributor Tracy Shaffer calls Walden: Life in the Woods "a magical Thoreau-infused yarn for the modern world, beautifully rendered and philosophical." Read more here.
thoreau's walden goes west
Director Alex Harvey talks about the connection today's Colorado has to Thoreau's classic Walden with The Aspen Times.
FILMS THAT WILL MAKE YOU PROUD TO BE A COLORADAN
303 Magazine highlights Walden: Life in the Woods as one of three Colorado-centric films garnering attention at the Denver Film Festival.
How a local film crew moved Walden Pond to the Colorado mountains
Award-winning arts journalist John Moore interviews director Alex Harvey, giving insight into how Walden: Life in the Woods came into existence. Read the interview here.
#andColorado spotlights Walden
#andColorado says, "This film bleeds Colorado," and names Walden: Life in the Woods its best of the Denver Film Festival.
Walden on Colorado's FOX31 & CHANNEL 2
Watch producer Mitch Dickman and actor Anthony LoVerde (Luke) chat Walden: Life in the Woods with the hosts of Colorado's Best on FOX31 & Channel 2.
DIRECTOR ALEX HARVEY TALKS WALDEN WITH COLORADO PUBLIC RADIO
Listen to the interview with Andrea Dukakis on CPR's Colorado Matters.
5280 Magazine's 10 must-see movies at #DFF40
Walden: Life in the Woods is named one of 10 must-see films at the 40th edition of the Denver Film Festival by 5280 Magazine!
exclusive first look at walden trailer
Deadline Hollywood shares the exclusive trailer for Walden: Life in the Woods ahead of its world premiere at the Denver Film Festival.
Walden world premiere announced
The Denver Film Festival announced its 40th edition line-up, including the world premiere of Walden: Life in the Woods. The film is also named a finalist for the festival's True Grit Best Colorado Feature Film Award. Read the announcement in the Denver Post.
MILE HIGH MOVIE MAGIC
5280 Magazine's May 2017 issue highlights Walden: Life in the Woods as one of the high-profile films putting Colorado cinema in the spotlight. Read the story here.
Films bringing thousands of opportunities, millions in revenue to colorADO
La Voz, Colorado's #1 Hispanic-owned bilingual publication, calls Walden: Life in the Woods "the most anticipated" among the feature films shot in Colorado recently. Read the full article here.
demián bichir gives walden a shout out
Demián Bichir chatted with Telemundo Denver while in town to promote his directorial debut Un Cuento de Circo & a Love Song, which screened at the Denver Film Festival in November 2016.
Watch the interview and listen for the Walden: Life in the Woods shout out here.
CAST announced
The cast of Walden: Life in the Woods will include Academy Award nominee Demián Bichir (A Better Life; The Hateful Eight; Che), Lynn Cohen (The Hunger Games: Catching Fire; Munich), Erik Hellman (The Dark Knight; Chicago P.D.), and newcomer Tony LoVerde of Denver-based rock band Bonnie and the Beard. The film will also feature T.J. Miller (Silicon Valley; Deadpool), Chris Sullivan (This Is Us; The Knick; Guardians Of The Galaxy), and Jamie Horton(Lincoln; Walker, Texas Ranger).
Read the production announcement on Deadline.
approved for $210K in film spending rebates
On May 19, 2016, Walden: Life in the Woods was approved for $210,000 from the Colorado Economic Development Commission. Learn more in the Denver Post.
