A documentary by Hannah Papacek Harper
In 2008, someone noticed that a new edition of the Oxford Junior Dictionary had quietly dropped a handful of words – words like acorn, otter, willow and wren. Did this reflect 21st-century children losing their connection to the natural world?
It was this quiet erasure that inspired poet and author Robert Macfarlane and painter and illustrator Jackie Morris to create The Lost Words: A Spell Book – a work that stands against the disappearance of a wild childhood. Combining Robert’s spell-like poems with Jackie’s hand-painted celebration of the British countryside, the book became a cultural touchstone.
Years later, filmmaker Hannah Papacek Harper was inspired to make her own response. That became Lost for Words, and she told me how the idea took root.
“It was lockdown. I was back home, walking around the countryside. I didn’t really have any interest in folk music at the time, but I became curious about how it connected to the landscape. I found a group of musicians online – The Spell Songs. They’re an ensemble that creates a listening experience where music, literature, language and art intersect. They aim to reawaken our love and appreciation for the wild.
“This led me to a film of Jackie Morris painting – in one, she paints an otter while reciting Robert’s poetry. It brought The Lost Words to life. I had the idea of turning these collaborations into a film, but I didn’t know how to shape it.
“As we came out of lockdown, I saw Jackie and the musicians perform. I knew then that I needed to collaborate with them. I contacted Jackie and Robert, and the timing was right. The result is Lost for Words. It took around three years to make – six months of that just on the sound design, which is vital to the whole experience.”
The film takes us on a journey around the British Isles, exploring how people interact with nature in different ways – shaped by where and how they encounter it. But throughout, the beauty and wonder of the natural world shine through. We see women singing beside Loch Arklet in the Trossachs, and watch white hares move almost ghost-like across snow-covered hills.
Hannah even came to Sheffield – long before she knew she’d be premiering the film at DocFest – to film in Endcliffe Park and on Meersbrook Road, capturing the local campaign to ‘Save the Trees’. It’s a moving inclusion that brings home the message of environmental stewardship, rooted in community action.
While the film doesn’t dwell heavily on the climate crisis, a sobering section brings in expert voices who speak about how human impact on the planet is now so deep it will be etched permanently into the Earth’s geological record.
Lost for Words is a beautiful and haunting film – visually rich and emotionally resonant. It reminds us that our responsibility is not just to future generations of people, but to the rivers, plants, trees and seas that share this planet with us.
