Skip to main contentSkip to navigationSkip to navigation
Nowt But a Fleeting Thing — The Guardian Documentaries
Photograph: The Guardian Documentaries
Photograph: The Guardian Documentaries

Nowt But a Fleeting Thing: the reality of farming

This article is more than 4 years old

Dom Bush’s film documents farming’s complex issues through a character-led story about a father and a son

Our latest Guardian documentary, Nowt But a Fleeting Thing, has just launched: a father and son story about the challenges of farming and a changing world in the north of England. It’s a beautiful film directed by Dom Bush and made with the support of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.

Nowt but a fleeting thing: a young farmer's fight for survival – video

We talked with Dom about his experiences making a film about a subject that is really close to his heart.

What was it like making a film about a subject and a community that you’re so close to?

I’m born and bred in the hills here in Cumbria so the story is really personal to me. I grew up on a smallholding in north Cumbria and we were surrounded by farms so I understood early on the intrinsic connection between people and animals.

I worked a little on farms as I got older so I saw what was going on behind the scenes to some extent. I knew there were solid reasons why people would choose to rear animals and work the land, but I could also see that life could be hard and livelihoods hung in the balance at times. Pride and purpose were mixed with some deep-set social and economic problems.

Farmers Raymond and Adam repair a wall in Cumbria. Photograph: Dom Bush/The Guardian Documentary

Given these experiences, I’ve always been really interested in the gap between people’s understanding of who farmers are and the reality. In that sense, I’ve been waiting to make this film since long before I chose to be a filmmaker.

How did you did you get to know the characters in your film, farmers Raymond and Adam?

There is a solid community of musicians and creative people in Cumbria where I live. Many people run their own businesses and work the land in some way. Adam and Helen were friends of friends.

Farmers are accustomed to being criticised by people who perhaps don’t fully understand the complexities of the situation they are in, so I knew there would be defences to overcome and trust to build before any filming could start. I think it also helped that I’d grown up around a similar community.

Filmmaker Dom Bush in the Lake District talking about his film Nowt But a Fleeting Thing.

Raymond had recently lost his wife, Adam’s mum. As a tenant farmer in his 70s there were no clear answers as to how he could retire, and he wanted to step away from the farm to spend time with his grandchildren. So though I felt Raymond’s voice was critical to the context of the film, and I needed a character who could represent the “old ways”, I was very aware of my duty of care, and that access should be treated with a lot of respect and understanding.

The film seems as much about the place as the people. Was that deliberate?

The film is set around the low-lying valleys of the south Lake District, about half an hour from where I live in Kendal. Not only is the location important to me personally, but it is also important because to some extent it’s these small valley farms that are at the forefront of the crisis in farming.

Incomes can be very low. Farmers in the valleys can’t access the extra environmental subsidies that may be available to those in the uplands or sites of special scientific interest (SSSI). They don’t rear the iconic breeds (like herdwicks and collie dogs) and attract tourists, and they don’t have lots of fertile arable land.

Dairy farmer Raymond Crowe. Photograph: Dom Bush/The Guardian Documentary

They do, however, make up a significant part of the farming population here in Cumbria. It was really important to me that we look beyond the chocolate box and present something closer to reality. I felt that I owe that to the characters and the viewers. I wanted to show the reality I grew up with, not what is sold to visiting tourists.

You shot the film yourself. What led you to that decision?

Sometimes I work in a small team, but for this film I chose to shoot everything alone so I could move around and interact more easily. There is always a chance of changing the rapport with your contributors as you bring in a larger crew. Also, work on a farm is busy and frenetic. You have to be able to get out of the way quickly.

Cattle on a traditional dairy farm in Cumbria. Photograph: Dom Bush/The Guardian

Farming is a very complex subject but, at its heart, this film is a character-led story about a father and a son who face different challenges in a changing world. Though it is subtle, I do hope that this film helps to change people’s minds about farming and farmers.

There are so many divisive powers at play in our country at the moment. I think it’s vitally important to convey personal stories with sincerity and nuance and that’s the opportunity I have as a filmmaker. I care deeply about the environment and I feel very strongly that farming and land use have to change, but blaming farmers for the system they work within is just too myopic. It makes it harder for people who need support to get it.

We need to change the system and I believe that telling people’s stories can open up possibilities for that.

The music is a really powerful part of the film. I found that particularly moving.

I’m really proud of the music. Lots of my friends here are folk musicians and music is intrinsically important to the culture of this place. It helps us understand our connection to the land and to each other. So it seemed natural as the story developed to record my friends’ music and use that as a score.

The words within the Sallows track Old Man were so perfect, it very quickly became one of the main features of the film.

How are Raymond and Adam doing now?

Things have certainly moved on since we finished filming. Adam and Helen now have a young baby called Sam and are continuing to raise their sheep in the orchards in Witherslack. Raymond has said goodbye to his dairy herd – the cows have been sold on to another farm in Cumbria. That was a difficult choice to make, but important given his need to reduce the workload on the farm in Rusland.

Coming up: Open Water

Open Water for the Guardian Documentaries. Photograph: Dan McDougall/The Guardian

A glimpse into the lives of three Greenlanders: a hunter, a ship’s captain and a fisherman, individuals whose very existence and heritage is intertwined with the Arctic Ocean. Like many who live in the polar north, their fortunes straddle the extremes of summer and winter. Faced with the looming spectre of a drastically changing environment, these seafarers reflect on their past and their present and uncertain future with a complex range of emotions.

You might also like: Divided Cities

An ambitious five-part series telling the stories of cities that reflect major global divisions.

Launched on the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin wall, Divided Cities looks beyond Trump and Brexit to the causes and consequences of global divisions, in a world ever more split between “us” and “them”.

Each episode will focus on a different global city, exploring issues including migration, nationhood, economic systems, the climate crisis and food access.

Divided Cities - episode 2, Havana, Cuba: ‘It’s not fair’: why Havana’s taxi drivers massively outearn doctors. Photograph: The Guardian

Most viewed

Most viewed