Caltha

Caltha is a retelling of the myth of the Caltha Palustris flower – a five-petaled, vibrant, yellow bloom that grows abundantly in the Biesbosch National Park in the Netherlands. In the traditional myth, a maiden named Caltha falls so in love with the Sun God Apollo that she stands in a field, desirous and paralyzed as her body and spirit wither away – a flower grows in her place. In the film, the myth is retold, but this time Caltha doesn’t want to melt. She travels to the edges of a moon-like landscape in search of a mineral that promises her salvation. However, as much as she tries to resist the limb-loosening rays of love, she cannot – she releases her fear and transforms.

The film explores the connection between the natural world and human emotion. The Biesbosch National Park, shaped by the historic Elizabeth’s Day Flood, mirrors the journey of the character Caltha, a young woman transformed by a flood of desire. The work considers how floods, both literal and emotional, shape the landscapes people inhabit as well as their internal states. Caltha is abstract and experimental, employing floods of color and sound to evoke the physical and emotional sensations of transformation within the myth. Through these elements, the film creates an immersive and visceral experience that reflects the themes of resistance and metamorphosis central to Caltha.