Portrait of Greenland

Portrait of Greenland from Of Two Lands on Vimeo.

Last year in June, our travels took us to a very remote location north of the Arctic Circle: Greenland.

We spent 4 days in Ilulissat, a town located on the western side whose name means 'Icebergs', and once we arrived it was easy to understand why the town was named after these white giants.

Icebergs in the Disko Bay area are some of the biggest in the world, rising up to 100m above sea level (more than 300ft). 
(The one that sank the Titanic is thought to have come from here.)

Apart from its gigantic icebergs, the town is known for the Ilulissat icefjord, a UNESCO World heritage site. 

Covering an area as large as 66,000 football fields, it is made by icebergs that calve from Sermeq Kujalleq, the fastest moving glacier in the world.

Our time exploring this beautiful and unique part of the world was filled with amazing and unforgettable experiences. 
From sailing under the midnight sun, hiking along the icefjord or whale spotting in the early morning, we feel very privileged to have had the opportunity to visit.

Being so high up north there is no darkness in summer at all and the sun keeps circling around all day long. 
The contrast of the blue sky, against the white icebergs as well as the temperature difference between the shore and the ocean made our filming experience very unique.

Crossing the Arctic Circle was a childhood dream and we are glad that we had the chance to document this place, as we know in the back of our minds that the Arctic is a fast-changing and very fragile environment, and due to human impact (in the form of over-tourism, mining or any other human exploits); it more than likely won’t be there forever, or at least not as we saw it.

Greenland's ice sheet covers 1.8 million km2 and contains 10% of the world's reserves of fresh water. Every year the ice is losing more mass than is being created. 
If the entire ice sheet melted, the world's oceans would rise by 6 metres…

Being there and actually flying over the icecap made us realise how important it really is to protect and care about this pure, fragile and beautiful place, and preserve it for future generations.

To see photos of the trip go to oftwolands.com | instagram.com/oftwolands

Music : Tony Anderson - Dwell (Snowfall remix)

(licence through The Music Bed)

Filmed on the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera, 

Edited in Final Cut Pro X and Graded with FilmConvert.