Mare’s Nest

In a world where adults are nowhere to be found and children account for the entire population, Mare’s Nest follows Moon; a curious child who journeys bravely into the unknown. Told through a chapter-based structure, director Ben Rivers tenderly captures Moon’s random encounters. Notably, the film features a short film adaptation of Don DeLillo’s The Word for Snow that acts as the intermission to Rivers’ epic odyssey of entrancing visuals. Functioning as a meditation upon the profound curiosities of adolescence, we see the world through Moon’s curious eyes. Embodying its juvenile periphery, Mare’s Nest traverses between lush environments through its 16mm gauge.

Mare’s Nest can be most accurately described as meditative and endlessly inviting. Rivers’ latest is a rewarding journey into the world of abandoned adolescence. The film boldly questions how we respond to our surrounding ecosystems in our formative years, and how the environments from our nurture shape us as individuals. Fresh off its Pardo Verde win at the 78th Locarno Film Festival, an accolade specifically reserved for films that effectively display ecological issues through their renegade form, Mare’s Nest invites viewers into an entrancing world that’s spiritually akin to a classic kid-friendly adventure. Think of a vanguard rendition of The Goonies. Its abstract episodic structure boldly asks its audience: what if the children were entirely left to their own devices? - Ben Scanga