About the FILM

DOWN to EARTH is a mirror to humanity, a poignant and timely reflection on our civilised world. The movie invites us to see the world through the eyes of the Earth Keepers. It takes us on an inner journey, connecting us with the source and the mutual path we are walking. DOWN to EARTH is both a wake up call and a resurgence of hope for our world to come.

DOWN to EARTH was not a planned project. When Renata and Rolf made the decision to break away from society, all they wanted was to find a different way of life and a different way for their children to grow up. At that time, they couldn’t know that this was only the beginning of a much larger journey and they had no idea that it would lead them to make a film. The calling to start recording their encounters with the Earth Keepers came three years into their journey, when they realised how the profound wisdom of the elders could impact people around the world.

DOWN to EARTH hopes to inspire people to be the change they want to see in the world, to evolve their inner journey to an outer one. After the record-breaking cinema release in the Netherlands, we were flooded with requests form audiences to use the film in their communities, schools and businesses - as a dialogue starter, an educational tool or an accelerator for change. To provide in the needs of our audiences and support the surge in people powered change we set up the The Down to Earth Foundation,

The EARTH KEEPERS

These Indigenous leaders are the message in the way they live their lives, they have retained a natural balance and live in harmony with their surroundings.
 

THe jOURNEY

Get to know more about the background and the making of the film. Discover how the journey unfolded, and the film came into being.
 

THE FILM MAKERS

Meet the makers of the film, find out who they are, and the crucial role the children played In the making of the film.

Before our journey we considered various territories on different continents where we could find communities that live in harmony with their natural surroundings. We reached out to gate keepers of these tribal communities, but there was no shortlist of Earth Keepers when we set out on our journey. We decided intuitively who to film as they came onto our path traveling around the world. In most cases the elders were not keen to be filmed and some were very much against the idea at first. But as we spend more time with them, living as a family in their midst, the trust grew and ultimately they all embraced the idea.  

 These Wisdom keepers are a message in the way they live their lives. Unaffected by man-made laws, man-made religion or the distorting layers of the ego, they share a clear and transcendent vision on life on planet Earth. They are referred in their communities as medicine people, wisdom keepers, shamans, healers or spiritual leaders. The term 'Earth Keepers' was chosen as we felt it was the right way to describe them in DOWN to EARTH. Not only are they incredibly humble and 'down-to-earth' individuals, but they are also the connectors between the other realms and our life on Earth, between the physical and non-physical worlds. We all live in multiple dimensions all the time, the only difference is that they are aware of it and can actively shift into other dimensions. Through their connection they can access much more information, reclaiming for themselves and assist others in reclaiming what has been abandoned in other realities.

Click on the picture of an Earth Keeper and hover over it to see their name and their country of origin.

Having lived in hiding for centuries, the Earth Keepers shared that they felt now is the time to step forward to share their insights and wisdom with those who are ready to listen. They see how our materialistic rationalist world is suffering on all levels from separation and what it has gained in knowledge, it possibly lost in wisdom. They see that we are not just disconnected from the non-physical world, but even from the natural world and from each other, forgotten that we are all deeply connected. They question the societal belief system and economic framework that dominate our modern world, that makes us believe that ‘more is better’ and that we are separated individuals competing for same scarce resources. The see how we live in a fear-based disconnected society that pushes us to seek false securities, turning us into addictive consumers, filling the void we are experiencing.

It is beautiful to see how they all speak with one voice, expressing exactly the same thoughts and ideas whilst living thousands of miles apart. Their simplicity, humility and understanding of humanity are unparalleled. Remarkably, their message to us is one of optimism. They see the current pain and chaos in the world today as a sign that humanity is on the verge of a global transformation, moving into a new era of peace and balance, just as it was foretold. They show us that we are not powerless, that this is our time to rise, individually and collectively.

LEAVING THE RAT RACE BEHIND

Our journey started in 2004. Our children were respectively 6, 3 and 1. We never expected that having children would have had such an effect on our thinking, the way we looked at the future and the way we looked at our Western society as a whole. We held up a mirror and asked ourselves what it was we were really trying to achieve. What was the value of ‘being successful’? What was our true contribution to the world our children would grow up in?

We felt an urge to break away, break out of the system.

We decided to take a time-out for a few years to re-connect with ourselves, re-connect with nature. And as we made that conscious decision, serendipity started to happen. Out of the blue we were invited to meet a clan of Native Americans in Upper Michigan. Meeting these people was the start of an adventure that would change our lives forever.

We both felt a strong draw to the land and the people: the Anishnaabe (first Native Americans), people who lived on those lands for thousands of years and whose way-of-being resonated so much with us. Looking back, it’s amazing how quick the decision was taken to pack up and sell everything and step into the unknown. We bought a piece of woodland along the North shores of Lake Michigan, on the ‘Land of the Dancing Spirits’ and started a new life.

We went without any plan other than to learn and grow. We built a house, built a school for our children, and a garden to grow our own food and medicine. We saw it as an opportunity to do something completely different, an opportunity to find a renewed perspective on life. We had no idea that this move was only a steppingstone for what was to come.

ANOTHER WORLD – ANOTHER REALITY

In the four years we lived in the woods we embraced many of the Native American teachings, realizing how fitting they actually are for our modern world. Yet, what really shifted us, was meeting Nowaten (He Who Listens), the teacher of our Native American friends. We had heard many stories about this medicine man, about his wisdom and his ability to heal people from incurable illnesses. When we finally met him in person, our eyes were opened to a whole different reality. How was this humble man, living a secluded life in the woods, able to tap into this seemingly infinite source of wisdom? How was he able to heal people who were given up on by the medical field? How did he always manage to answer the questions we hadn't even started to ask, the questions that lie in our hearts?

OUR QUEST

We realized that there are people like Nowaten all around the world: Wisdom Keepers, people who have held on to a connection that most of us have lost. We felt a calling to record Nowaten and medicine people like him on all continents, to share their wisdom with the world. We felt that those Keepers of the Earth might hold the key to a renewed world. But when we asked Nowaten how he felt about being filmed, he didn’t answer. It was almost a year later, on our seventh visit, that he responded to our question. This moment marked the beginning of what would become DOWN to EARTH.

FINDING THE KEEPERS OF THE EARTH

How do you find people who live under the radar of our modern society? Individuals like Nowaten who live in service of their community and who have never been interviewed or filmed before. Initially we had no idea how to manifest such a huge quest. A year of research followed and slowly but surely the necessary pieces started to fall into place, including the funding for the journey we were about to embark on. We decided to travel around the world for a year, together with our children, now 10, 7 and 6. No crew, no production team, one backpack and a camera each.

We lived with an aboriginal family on a remote island and with the San (Bushman) in the Kalahari desert and had many more amazing encounters. But our journey was more than a fascinating adventure. The memories, the friendships and teachings that the journey brought us, are forever. Throughout the process of making this film, we were severely tested, over and over again. That way the journey was one big lesson in having faith and following one’s intuition. In every country we had to start from scratch as nothing was laid out. The experience of the journey to find and meet these people was and always will be more important to us than the film itself.

TIME FOR CHANGE

The Keepers of the Earth, as we came to call them, weren’t eager to be filmed and some had to overcome their traditional stance about being filmed and recorded. Therefore it was very powerful to experience that, without these people being linked to one another in any physical way, they told us over and over again how they felt that now was the time to step forward. It often happened in the process of meeting these people, that they changed their mind and, to the surprise of the community, accepted our invitation to be filmed. The Keepers of the Earth are unified in their vision that the time of change is here and now.

ROLF WINTERS, Filmmaker

Rolf is an internationally operating consultant, coach and speaker in the field of leadership. After a corporate career, at the age of 30, his incessant drive to understand and make better use of human potential led him to found his own leadership consulting firm. For ten years he travelled Europe as boardroom consultant and coach, working for some of the largest corporations in the world. Through his in-depth experiences with leaders and decision making at the top of the corporate pyramid, Rolf gained an insight into the stranglehold our established structures have on organizations and their leaders, the damaging effects of their short-term focus and the lack of a holistic vision. Disappointed by the lack of true leadership he witnessed in the world, he started searching for a different perspective and a key to renewal. When he was exposed to the leadership principles and the way-of-life of the Anishnabe (first Native Americans), he felt he had found that key. The Native American vision on life and their way-of-being resonated so strongly with him that the decision he and Renata made to sell up and leave their cosmopolitan life behind was taken almost overnight. They retreated for four years with their three young children into the woods of Upper Michigan in order to learn and gain a deeper understanding of the wisdom and heritage of the Native Americans. After three years the vision came to record the wisdom they encountered. They bought a camera and started filming in their local vicinity, which would ultimately evolve into Down to Earth. Whilst completing the film and Rolf continued his work with established and emerging young leaders around the world, now integrating the wisdom and insights he gained from the Keepers of the Earth. Rolf is now finalising his book on wisdom-based leadership with which he hopes to contribute to the needed leadership reset. For more info on Rolf, see www.wiseleaders.com

RENATA HEINEN, Filmmaker

Renata is a visual artist, writer/creator, and filmmaker. Renata was born and raised in the Netherlands but has lived most of her professional life in the UK and the USA. For Renata her encounter with the Native Americans and their connected way-of-life felt like coming home on more than one level. Besides being drawn to learn from the Native American ways, Renata was very passionate to start a new life from scratch in the woods of Upper Michigan: Leading a simple life in connection with nature, growing her own food and medicine, raising animals and for her children to grow up with more freedom, surrounded by nature.  When the vision came to document the Keepers of the Earth around the world, she was determined to travel as a family without a crew. Even though balancing the various roles was challenging at times, her vision to do everything as a family proved to be the key to get access to remote tribal communities that aren’t accessible for film crews. Her experience as a storyteller in image and word was crucial in the film making process, where hundreds of hours of footage had to be distilled into a 90-minute heart-felt experience for the audience. Having worked for a decade to bring the voices of the Earth Keepers to the world, Renata felt drawn to dig deeper into her own source, finding her own voice.  She is currently working on developing a fictional TV-series about love and addiction. For more info on Renata, see Instagram: Renata Heinen.

THE CHILDREN

DOWN to EARTH was the journey of a family. And the journey or the film wouldn't have turned out the way they have without the children. They were the starting point of the journey as their arrival in the world was the catalyst that made their parents decide to break away and seek a different way of life, a different way for them to grow up. In hindsight they also appeared to be the 'door openers' for the family to be welcomed by remote and protected indigenous communities. Doors that would have remained closed for just any film crew opened up because they came first and foremost as a family, to learn and listen. Upon arrival the children would already be off playing with the local children whilst the parents were still making contact through an interpreter. But not just that, they ultimately became part of the film making team as it was the footage on their cameras that saved the day in the re-edit of the film! When they went on their journey Renata and Rolf had no intention for the family to appear in the film. They were determined to make a film purely documenting the Earth Keepers through the lens of their camera, with the family staying behind the camera at all times. However, when film executives and test audiences saw the completed film, undivided they pressed them to incorporate the story of the family's journey in the film. They had no filmed material and it was the footage they discovered on the cameras of the children that enabled them to weave the story of the family into the final version of the film.