Sea Without Shore + Q&A

“Extraordinary. If ever there was a film about love, this is it.” Pedro Olivotto, National Film Curator, Brazil

“Suddenly you are inside this very private story, holding your breath with a broken heart.” Lothaire Bluteau (Jesus of Montreal), Winner Jury Prize, Cannes Film Festival

The ICA and Birkbeck College, University of London are pleased to present the feature film Sea Without Shore, followed by a Q&A with the directors, Sea Without Shore sound supervisor Glenn Freemantle, Academy-Award and multiple BAFTA winner (Gravity), and composer Andrew McKenzie (The Haftler Trio).

A captivating exploration of love and loss at the fin-de-siècle. Set in remote forest landscapes and interiors in rural 19th century Sweden, Sea without Shore follows what happens when an amorous relationship between two women is abruptly cut short. After the loss of her soulmate, the surviving lover is drawn to the depths of mid-winter forests, into spheres of the subconscious, inhabited by unknown forces. There is no return.

The film is directed by Andre Semenza and Fernanda Lippi, founders of critically acclaimed Anglo-Brazilian physical theatre company Zikzira and makers of Ashes of God. Post-produced at Pinewood Studios, the film features a sound design supervised by Academy-Award and multiple BAFTA winner Glenn Freemantle (Gravity).

The stream-of-consciousness narration, a collage of poetic fragments, features words by 16th century lesbian poet Katherine Philips, 19th century fin de siècle poets Renée Vivien and Algernon Charles Swinburne whose agnostic, visionary poetry lend the film a hypnotic quality.

"Staging a hypnotic dance of embodied emotion, Sea Without Shore speaks powerfully to the senses of sight, hearing, touch. Loss rips, tears, and unravels the fabric of the self like the fraying dress worn by the bereaved lover, entoiling or entangling the viewer in this compulsive exploration of the ‘soul within the sense’." Catherine Maxwell, Professor of Victorian Literature, Queen Mary, University of London

The original music for Sea without Shore was created by pioneering composer The Hafler Trio (aka Andrew McKenzie), using the cast’s sonic imprints for the creation of the soundtrack.

Andrew McKenzie, who has made over 70 albums, has collaborated with key figures in contemporary music including Chris Watson of Cabaret Voltaire, Fluxus artist Willem de Ridder, Nurse With Wound, Autechre, Jónsi Birgisson of Sigur Rós, and 2015 Golden Globe winner Jóhann Jóhannsson.

Sea Without Shore was photographed in cinema-scope by award-winning British director of photography, Marcus Waterloo. 

Watch the Sea Without Shore trailer.

Read about the process of making the film.