Earth Defender is a music film exposing the lives lost while defending nature.
Earth Defender is a joint director collaboration between Jorik Dozy and Sil van der Woerd from Studio Birthplace, and 19 year old Indigenous filmmaker Kynan Tegar.
Kynan is a young Dayak Iban filmmaker from Sungai Utik, West Kalimantan, where the film was shot.
Having grown up in the traditional longhouse, Kynan pursued her passion for photography and videography. Using film as a medium for change, he created several documentaries about Sungai Utik’s fight in protection of their nature, their cultures, and their story
Kynan ensured that the film was told from the community’s lens, capturing the essence of the community's connection with nature, guaranteeing authenticity.
Dutch directors Sil van der Woerd & Jorik Dozy started to co-direct in 2017. In their Music Videos and Short Films they combine exotic locations, stunning cinematography and high end visual effects to tell heartfelt stories that often touch on ecological and humanitarian issues.
The studio and their work has received over 100 award wins. Their music video Birthplace, about the the pressing issue of plastic pollution in our oceans, won Best Music Video at the prestigious CamerImage film festival (Poland) and Video Of The Year at the AIM Independent Music Awards.
Jorik Dozy & Sil van der Woerd - Co-Directors: “Indigenous and Earth Defender voices must be amplified because they lead some of the most important work on the front line of our climate and human rights crises. We wanted to support their story with our craft and skills, but as Westerners, of course we cannot speak for them. So we collaborated closely with filmmaker Kynan Tegar and the Indigenous community Sungai Utik where Kynan is from, to ensure this is their story, told their way, with their voices guiding every step.”
Kynan Tegar - Co-Director: “A collaboration between cultures like this is really important. Studio Birthplace took into account the Indigenous voices, avoiding tokenism, which is what is happening in a lot of different spaces. That didn't happen here. It was a very real collaboration where everyone was able to equally contribute and shape the film into what they believed was right.