A real life science fiction movie exploring a world creeping right beneath our feet, where time and space are magnified and intelligence redefined.
The Creeping Garden is a multi award winning feature length creative documentary exploring the work of fringe scientists, mycologists and artists, and their relationship with the extraordinary plasmodial slime mould.
With an original soundtrack composed by celebrated musician Jim O'Rourke (Sonic Youth, Werner Herzog's 'Grizzly Man') this is a unique exploration into a hitherto untapped subject matter, observing and immersing the audience into the worlds of the observers and the observed.
The slime mould is being used to explore biological-inspired design, emergence theory, unconventional computing and robot controllers, much of which borders on the world of science fiction.
But as well as exploring the slime mould in the lab, the film also travels out into the wild, hunting for the organisms in their natural habitat with dedicated amateurs and experts alike.
Co-directed by film-maker Tim Grabham and writer and film curator Jasper Sharp, the film follows in the unconventional footsteps of Grabham's previous feature 'KanZeOn' and Sharps fascination with the extended world of Mycology.
‘Imagine if Stanley Kubrick and Douglas Trumbull were tasked with making a 1970's educational science film about the pods from Don Siegel’s Invasion of the Body Snatchers and you’re some way to understanding The Creeping Garden.’
James Marsh, Twitchfilm
‘Paradoxically down to earth and deeply eccentric…. invoking science fiction’s creeping unknowns.’
Kim Newman, Sight and Sound
‘The Creeping Garden is almost certainly the Citizen Kane of slime mould documentaries… lavished with widescreen macro-photography.’
Nick Pinkerton, Sight and Sound
The Arrow Academy Creeping Garden release is available on Blu-Ray / DVD.
The film is released by Arrow Video as a three disc directors-approved edition with a fully illustrated booklet, reversible sleeve artwork, original soundtrack and multiple extras.
awards
Outlier Film Festival – WINNER: best documentary
Morbido Fest – WINNER: bronze skull special mention
Fantastic Fest – WINNER: best directors documentary
TV broadcast
Телеканал 24_DOC, Russia – October 2015
NPO 2, Holland – November, 2015
theatrical release
The Guild Cinema, Albuquerque – February 2nd – 4th, 2016
Facets Cinémathèque, Chicago – November 27th – December 3rd, 2015
The Brattle Theatre, Boston, MA, November 20th – 24th, 2015
Clinton Street Theatre, Portland – November 20th – 22nd, 2015
Naro Cinema, Norfolk, Virginia – November 18th, 2015
4-Star Theatre, San Francisco – Starts November 13th
Dollar Cinema, Marquee CineSpotlight, Montreal – Run begins November 6th, 2015
The Royal, Toronto, Ontario – November 1st – 8th 2015
Jean Cocteau Cinema, Santa Fe, New Mexico – October 30th – November 5th, 2015
Vancity Theatre, Vancouver BC – Run begins October 30th
Arena Cinema, Los Angeles – October 28th – November 5th, 2015
Plaza De Oro Theatre, Santa Barbara, California – October 28th, 2015
The Belcourt Theatre, Nashville, Tennessee – October 22 & 24th, 2015
Cinema Detroit, Detroit, Michigan – October 16th – 23rd 2015
Indievents Film Screening Series, Sioux Falls, South Dakota – October 14th, 2015
CalArts, Valencia, California – October 9th, 2015
Zeitgeist Multidisciplinary Arts Center, New Orleans – October 9 – 15th, 2015
Gateway Film Center, Columbus, Ohio – October 9 – 15th, 2015
Grand Illusion Cinema, Seattle, Washington – October 9 – 15th, 2015
TIFF Bell Lightbox, Toronto – Run begins October 9th, 2015
Film Forum, New York – Run begins September 30th, 2015
screenings
e-flux Artist Cinema Series – Online – Feb 2024
Margate Mushroom Club, UK – November, 2023
All Things Fungi Festival, UK – September, 2023
INSCIENCE X BODEMLEVEN: BIO-SCOOP #2, Netherlands – September, 2023
Labocine Live – August 19th – 21st 2022
Copenhagen Architecture Festival, Denmark – October 11th 2021
Hot Docs, Ted Rogers Cinema, Tornto, Canada – May to June 29th 2021
Interflugs, Berlin, Germany – February 7th, 2020
UK Fungus Day, Bristol – October 5th 2019
University of the Arts, Berlin – October 2019
Norpas Festival, Finland – August 4th 2019
Ramsgate Festival of Sound, UK – July 20th 2019
The Bellhouse Secret Science Club, Brooklyn, USA – June 16th, 2019
Cheltenham Science Festival, UK – June 6th 2019
Offscreen Festival, Ghent, Belgium – May 23rd, 2019
MYÖS, Helsinki, Finland – February 24th, 2019
CRASSH, University of Cambridge, UK – January 22nd, 2019
UK Fungus Day, Bristol, UK – October 6th, 2018
DokuBaku, Azerbaijan – October 7th, 2018
Margate Film Festival, UK – October 7th, 2018
Savonlinna International Nature Film Festival, Finland – August 20th, 2017
ARoS Art Museum, Denmark – June 5th, 12th, 19th, 26th, July 3rd, 10th , 7th , 24th 2017
Oswestry’s Community Cinema, Shropshire, UK – June 14th 2017
AAVE Festival, Helsinki, Finland – April 12th 2018
Ducudays UA, Ukraine – March 28th, 2017
Chelsea College of Art, London – March 8th, 2017
Birkbeck Cinema, London – March 9th 2017
Ha’yarkon 19 Gallery, Israel – January 4th, 2017
Friche – London, UK – November 22nd, 2016
Les Utopiales de Nantes – International Sci-Fi Fest, Nantes, France – Oct 29th, 31st, 2016
Bioneers, California, USA – October 22nd, 2016
The Guild Cinema, Albuquerque, USA – October 20th, 2016
Planet of the Weird, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates – September 12th, 2016
Telluride Mushroom Festival, Colorado, USA – August 18th, 2016
Belfast Film Festival, SARC, Belfast, Northern Ireland – April 15th 2016
Environmental Film Fest, Smithsonian Gallery of Art, Washington, USA – March 19th 2016
Red Rattler Theatre, Marrickville, NSW, Australia – March 16th 2016
Eurodok, Oslo, Norway – March 11th, 12th 2016
Oneota Film Festival, Iowa, USA – March 4th, 6th 2016
Exile Room, Athens, Greece – February 25th, 2016
WORM Instituut voor Avantgardistische Recreatie, Holland – 16th December, 2015
RKZbios, Groningen, The Netherlands – 13th December, 2015
PhysNet, New York, USA – December 3rd, 2015
Filmhuis, Alkmaar, The Netherlands – 15th November, 2015
InScience Dutch International Science Film Festival, The Netherlands – November 2015
Cascade Annual Mushroom Festival, Eugene, Oregon, USA – October 22nd, 2015
Pariscience international Science Film Festival, Paris, France – October 3rd, 2015
Artist FairTaiwan, Taiwan – October 2nd / 3rd, 2015
Scribe Video Centre, Philadelphia, USA – September 29th, 2015
Floating Cinema, London, UK – August 30th, 2015
The Telluride Mushroom Festival, Colorado, USA – August 15th, 2015
Revelation Perth International Fim Festival, Australia – July 4th, 5th, 6th, 11th, 2015
New Horizons International Film Festival, Wroclaw, Poland – July 26th, 27th, 2015
The Exploratorium, San Francisco, USA – May 21, 2015
South London Botanical Institute, London, UK – May 17th 2015
DOXA Documentary Film Festival, Vancouver, Canada – May 10, 2015
Cinemarfa Film Festival, Texas, USA – May 9th 2015
Hot Docs Festival, Toronto, Canada – 24th / 25th April / 2nd May 2015
Chicago Cinema Society, Chicago, USA – 4th / 8th April 2015
Morbido Fest Anti Spring, Mexico City – 21st March, 2015
Flatpack Festival, Birmingham, UK – 21st March, 2015
Cleveland International Film Festival, Ohio, USA – 19th / 20th / 21st March, 2015
Offscreen Film Festival, Brussels, Belgium – 8th March, 2015
Peninsula Arts Contemporary Music Festival, Plymouth, UK – 28th February, 2015
Institute of Contemporary Arts, London, UK – 10th December 2014
Morbido Fest , Mexico – November 2014
Outlier Film Festival, Nova Scotia, Canada – 27th November 2014
28th Leeds International Film Festival, Leeds, UK – 15th / 18th / 20th November, 2014
Institute of Contemporary Arts, London, UK – 19th November 2014
CPH:DOX, Copenhagen, Denmark – 9th / 12th November 2014
Spectrefest, Los Angeles, USA – 6th / 8th / 9th November 2014
STATE Experience Science Festival, Germany – October 28th 2014
Imagine Science Film Festival, New York, USA – October 18th 2014
Fantasic Fest, Austin, Texas, USA – 19th / 22nd September, 2014,
Fantasia International Film Festival, Montreal, Canada – 27th / 28th July 2014
press notes
‘Paradoxically down to earth and deeply eccentric…. invoking science fiction’s creeping unknowns.’
Kim Newman, Sight and Sound
‘The Creeping Garden is almost certainly the Citizen Kane of slime mould documentaries… lavished with widescreen macro-photography.’
Nick Pinkerton, Sight And Sound
‘Here is a documentary that in filmic and scientific terms is the equivalent of a lengthy mandolin solo on a triple gatefold prog-rock album. Strange, eccentric, diverting.’
Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian
‘Genuinely fascinating…’
Matt Looker, Total Film
‘Bewitching documentary about an overlooked life form’
Graham Rickson, The Arts Desk
‘This neatly shot oddball film… reveals more aspects to slime mould than you’d ever imagine’
Trevor Johnston, Radio Times
‘Suppurating slime mould takes the limelight in this eccentric, sci-fi themed documentary.’
John Wadsworth, Little White Lies
‘Tim Grabham and Jasper Sharp’s uncanny documentary “The Creeping Garden” has a way of growing on you… a surprising investigation of perception, thought and life itself.
Nicolas Rapold, The New York Times
‘Heady and rigorous… Grabham and Sharp explore slime molds with a dry wit… shooting the creeping goo (like the Blob in miniature) with a Lynchian beauty.’
Serena Donadoni, L.A. Weekly
‘An improbably delightful documentary’
Dennis Harvey, Variety
‘The movie hums as if it was shot by aliens visiting Earth for the first time, and that’s a high compliment.’
Jordan Hoffman, The Guardian
‘An out-of-left-field nerdy delight’
John DeFore, The Hollywood Reporter
‘A vibrant cinematic cabinet of curiosities that will leave you giddy and delirious with wonder.’
Eli Horwatt, Hot Docs International Documentary Festival
‘Stupendously fascinating and individualistic documentary masterpiece… see it and be forever altered.’
Mitch Davis, Fantasia International Film Festival
‘Imagine if Stanley Kubrick and Douglas Trumbull were tasked with making a 1970s educational science film about the pods from Don Siegel’s Invasion of the Body Snatchers and you’re some way to understanding The Creeping Garden.’
James Marsh, Twitchfilm
