Ground-breaking composer and producer Ólafur Arnalds has today released his short film ‘When We Are Born’, which was directed by the visionary filmmaker Vincent Moon and is available now on demand (Amazon, Google Play, and iTunes/Apple TV). Its soundtrack – containing new single ‘Saudade’, alongside songs with similar resonance from Arnalds’ recent album, ‘some kind of peace’ – will be released on July 9th.
‘When We Are Born’ is a unique live performance film telling a thoroughly human story (based in part on Ólafur’s life). Filmed on location in Iceland in summer 2020, it features the contributions of an unparalleled creative collective. The piece was directed by Vincent Moon, an independent French filmmaker known for his unique style of capturing live performance – Arcade Fire, Bon Iver, R.E.M and The National – and his intimate documentaries. It also features work from the innovative choreographer Erna Ómarsdóttir, the Iceland Dance Company, and cinematographer Thor Eliasson. ‘When We Are Born’ explores the themes of rituals, relationships and our inner landscape through music from Ólafur’s recent album, ‘some kind of peace’ (performed and recorded live on set). Alongside new single ‘Saudade’, the journey through the surreal world of ‘When We Are Born’ is ultimately focused on how we all move forward — a theme made especially potent in the times of disconnect and isolation it emerged from.
2021 continues a rich period of evolution for Ólafur Arnalds. One of the most influential musicians of modern times, he has paved the way across the electronic and classical worlds, winning a BAFTA and earning an Emmy nomination for his main title theme for Apple TV+ series, ‘Defending Jacob’. Ólafur has rarely, however, appeared as open as on ‘some kind of peace’. Featuring collaborations with the likes of Bonobo, JFDR and Josin, the album quickly became Ólafur’s most critically and commercially successful to date. Partly conceived during the pandemic – but written about letting your guard down, and what it means to feel alive – it’s a world explored further in companion film, ‘When We Are Born’. Even against a background of chaos, it is, too, a world unmistakably his own: here is that rare kind of talent both innovative, unpredictable, and immediately recognisable as Ólafur Arnalds.
The news coincides with dates added for Arnalds’ ‘some kind of peace’ headline tour, which kicks off its first leg later in 2021. A live experience truly not to be missed (and his first shows after Covid), Ólafur’s tour follows his last record ‘re:member’ and its 140+ date world tour, where he sold out the likes of Royal Albert Hall, headlined Wilderness and Iceland Airwaves, plus curated his own, suitably genre-bending festival at the Southbank Centre. Check out the full list of dates thus far below, with more to be added in 2022…
Watch ‘When We Are Born’: https://MKX.lnk.to/OAWhenWeAreBorn