Toby Kiers
In The Underground Astronaut
Science
Synopsis
The Underground Astronaut
Beneath our feet lies a mystery. A complex underground network of mycorrhizal fungi keeps our ecosystem alive by exchanging nutrients and carbon with almost all plants on Earth. Remarkably, no one knows exactly how these sophisticated and ancient systems operate, or how they are affected by climate change.
The Underground Astronaut follows evolutionary biologist Toby Kiers, named one of the 2022 TIME100 Next Innovators, on her quest to map the world’s fungi networks and understand their behaviour before it’s too late. A fragrant and urgent journey underground. “No fungi, no future.”
Credits
- Character
- Toby Kiers
- Director
- Marleine van der Werf
- Country
- Italy, Netherlands
- Duration
- 17 min
- Year
- 2023
All eyes are on Toby Kiers as she maps the world’s underground fungal networks before it’s too late.
Toby Kiers
Evolutionary biologist Toby Kiers’ (1976) groundbreaking research on fungi is drawing considerable attention from the international media, including Time Magazine and The New York Times. Her mission is to map the world’s unknown fungal networks. This is of critical importance because, according to Kiers, they are indispensable to our ecosystem and store large amounts of CO2 – a key weapon in our fight against global warming.
Acclaims
- Named one of 2022 TIME100 Next Emerging Leaders Shaping the Future
- Executive Director and Chief Scientist at SPUN (The Society for the Protection of Underground Networks)
- Winner of the Ammodo Science Award (2019), the E.O. Wilson Award for Natural History (2021) and an NWO Stairway to Impact Award (2022)
SPUN
In 2021, Toby Kiers launched SPUN, an organisation that aims to protect and harness the mycorrhizal networks that regulate the earth’s climate and ecosystems. On their website you’ll find reports from their various expeditions, a world map of underground ecosystems and step-by-step guide on how to take soil samples, and more.
SCREENINGS
The Underground Astronaut has been featured since April 2023 on NPO2EXTRA and at various (inter)national film festivals and events, including:
- Docville, Leuven, BE
- DOK Film Market, Leipzig, DE
- Environmental Film Festival, Zagreb, HR
- Eye Film Museum, Amsterdam, NL
- Festival MAAS – Studium Generale, Maastricht, NL
- Go Short International Short Film Festival, Nijmegen, NL
- Inscience Film Festival, Nijmegen, NL
- International Film Festival Ekotopf, Bratislava, SL
- Scinema International Science Film Festival, Adelaide, AU
- Silbersalz Science and Media Awards, Halle, DE
- St. Louis International Film Festival, St. Louis, US
- Utrecht University Betweter Festival, Utrecht, NL
The Underground Astronaut won ‘Best Short Film’ at Scinema ISFF, Adelaide, AU.
There is also collaboration with cultural institutions and educational organisations:
- Docuseek
- Eye Film Player
- Green Library, Zagreb, HR
- Het Lage Noorden, Marrum, NL
- Impact programme with Nicole Beutler’s performance Atmen
- Labocine (online platform)
- MU Hybrid Art House, Eindhoven, NL
- Netwerk Filmeducatie (database with films and lessons for Dutch education)
Director
Marleine van der Werf
Marleine van der Werf (1985) is a filmmaker/ artistic researcher with a documentary practice. In her films and multi-sensory installations she collaborates with scientists. Her projects have been shown at IDFA, Future of storytelling NY and Art Basel. In 2018 she won the Next Talent award and in 2019 she was selected as a European Talent for Science Media. In 2021 she became a Sundance Institute Interdisciplinary Program Grantee.