Work / Headland
Headland
Writer-director · Documentary · 13 min · UK/Scotland · 2024
Programmers, broadcasters and educators: request a screener
On a pebbled beach reclaimed from the ocean, tension rises as the age-old tradition of sea rescues interweaves with recent Channel crossings.
Recognition
- World premiere, Edinburgh International Film Festival, 2024
- Best Mini-Doc award, Big Sky Documentary Film Festival, USA, 2025 (international premiere)
- Honourable Mention, The Whickers, Folkestone DocFest, 2025 (also nominated for Best Short Film)
- Official Selection, Aspen Shortsfest, 2025
- Best Short Film Director, FilmAmbiente, Brazil, 2025
- Best Short Film, Pianeta Mare Film Festival, Naples, 2025
- Honourable Mention, Water Value Award, CineEco Seia, Portugal, 2025
- Qualified for Academy Award consideration
- Screened at over 30 festivals and venues
All festivals and screenings
Festivals
- Edinburgh International Film Festival, UK, 2024 (world premiere)
- Inverness Film Festival, UK, 2024
- Big Sky Documentary Film Festival, USA, 2025 (international premiere)
- Vera Film Festival, Åland Islands, 2025
- Aspen Shortsfest, USA, 2025
- Sunderland Shorts Film Festival, UK, 2025
- CinemAmbiente Environmental Film Festival, Italy, 2025
- FilmAmbiente International Environmental Film Festival, Brazil, 2025
- Pianeta Mare Film Festival, Italy, 2025 (Campania premiere)
- CineEco Seia International Environmental Film Festival, Portugal, 2025
- Hebrides International Film Festival, UK, 2025
- Crested Butte Film Festival, USA, 2025
- Ridgway Independent Film Festival, USA, 2025
- Montrose LandxSea Film Festival, UK, 2025
- Filmfestival Münster, Germany, 2025
- Folkestone Documentary Festival, UK, 2025
- Bolton Film Festival, UK, 2025
- Kendal Mountain Festival, UK, 2025
- Mares da Fin do Mundo International Documentary Festival, Spain, 2025
- London Migration Film Festival, Shorts Competition, UK, 2025
- British Shorts Film Festival, Berlin, Germany, 2026
- Giornate per la Terra di Genova (Pianeta Mare Film Festival), Italy, 2026
- Starling Film Fest, UK, November 2026
Other screenings
- (Un)borderings screening and discussion, DocScreen, Filmhouse, Edinburgh, August 2025
- Porta Curtas online, FilmAmbiente, Brazil, August–September 2025
- (Un)borderings, Kontekst Collective at Finch Community Cinema, London, October 2025
- Headland and Blue Has No Borders, The Palace Cinema, Broadstairs, October 2025
- CineEco Extensions, Cineclube do Faial, Azores, Portugal, December 2025
- (Un)borderings, errante, London, January 2026
- (un)borderings exhibition and workshop, Migration Matters Festival, Sheffield, June 2026
“Through its lush, haunting cinematography and understated yet powerful storytelling, Headland captures the ever-present movement of people and place—reminding us that migration is not just a contemporary issue but a fundamental part of nature and humanity.”
“A gentle and visually stunning documentary whose profundity sneaks up and quietly grabs you. It’s a deeply humane film about things that shift: shorelines, careers, and people who shift with the rise and fall of life’s tides. The soundscape is incredible.”
“With mature direction, the documentary presents Dungeness, a headland in Kent, England, that was a refuge for the crews of shipwrecked vessels and now bears witness to the shipwrecks of migrants making their way to Europe.”
Interview · Read my interview with The New Current, for British Shorts Berlin 2026
Credits
Writer-directorMariana Duarte
ProducerAlice Rowsome
Executive producersFlore Cosquer, Mark Thomas
CinematographerMonika Davies
Additional cameraJuulia Kalavainen
EditorsMariana Duarte, Eilidh Munro
Sound design and composerJamie Perera
ColouristFlorian Viale
Production companyA Bridging the Gap Production
Supported byScottish Documentary Institute, Screen Scotland
