"It's pretty damn natural here ..." River revival

Rivers are the lifelines of mankind, a memory that has become a landscape, but mostly diked as a useful transportation route. In the happy Havelland region, 100 kilometers of the Lower Havel between Havelberg and Pritzerbe are being transformed from a busy waterway into a near-natural river. It is one of the most extensive river restoration projects in Europe and a pilot project for flood and climate protection. The renaturation opens up new spaces for the people who live with and in this landscape.

While thousands of migratory birds fly over the Havel and Elbe in Indian summer, the film explores visions, struggles and the quiet magic of the floodplain landscapes. Eight women and men take a look at life on the river. The Elbe is considered the river of destiny of the Havel, and the two rivers are connected. Will the renaturation of the Havel send out signals to strengthen the natural but endangered Elbe? Every society decides on the space it allows its last wild rivers.

Press release "River revival", film documentary by Susanne Isabel Yacoub, 2015