Lizzie MacKenzie

@ofthewiild is speaking on this panel at @cannes.docs next month thanks to @docassociationeu @baoshea , alongside our wonderful friend @rebeccamday @film.in.mind and other gems 💞 May 18 @ 16:30 #cannes2026 #cannesdocs #documentary #film #filmmaker

Luckiest gal alive to be working with @ofthewiild on this dream project. Thank you @cannes.docs @marchedufilm , @screenscots and @scottishdocinstitute 🙏 And most importantly, big thanks to our incredible team, our loves and our furry friends and creatures who have patiently listened to us bang on about it for hours on end. I hope you all have a Lizzie MacKenzie in your life and if you don’t you must find one ASAP. Hit us up for a meeting if you’re in Cannes 14-20 May 👌🏻✨

I’m trying to let the young horses learn about the world, and using their bodies and brains in the world, as much as they can on their own, without being attached to a human. They have such curiosity and natural confidence! I’m loving watching herd synchrony shape their experiences. If Faolan and Ossian show nervousness or fear about anything we encounter, the girls express that too. That synchrony of emotion and movement is such a core part of herd life, and when we are with them we contribute to that shared consciousness too. Thankfully the boys have a lot of experience and love nothing more than exploring beyond their field (as much as I try to keep their ‘fields’ varied and interesting, horses get bored so easily). So as far as the girls are concerned, I hope they come to feel that all of Morvern is their home to feel safe in and enjoy, not just the fences they sometimes stay behind. And then… stretching that beyond Morvern, and out even further into the world 💫 I’m really curious to see how all of this shapes them when it comes to introducing riding in the years ahead. It also got me thinking - wouldn’t it be great if we had a kind of star rating system for horses’ living environments? Something rooted in welfare, that we could filter our choices through. What would you include? • Variety of forage and browse • Interesting, varied terrain • Quality of view • Access to natural running water • Mixed sex herd • Presence of other species • Seasonal movement between pastures What else would you add? #horseherd #horsetraining #scottishhighlands #equinewelfare #trailriding

There is a part of us that remembers how to live in rhythm - with land, animal, body, and instinct. The Inner Wild is a 7-day Highland retreat blending somatic work, ritual, depth psychology, and time alongside rewilded horses and cattle - designed to help you slow down, listen deeply, and reconnect with your own inner wild nature. Set on a breathtaking coastal peninsula on the west coast of Scotland and held across the ancient seasonal threshold of Beltane, this is an invitation into rest, renewal, and meaningful connection. For those feeling the call toward something deeper, we have a few spaces left and we’d love to welcome you! Website link in bio. #scottishhighlands #highlandretreat #animalcommunication #rewilding #womenwhorunwiththewolves

2025. Some highlights. It’s been a year of intense focus for me on the film that’s been in progress for the last 5 years (give or take!/when was the seed planted?), and should hopefully be finished in 2026 due to miraculously timed @sundanceorg support! To me it’s almost the only thing that makes sense to do with my time; channel my grief at what’s happening in the wider world by creating, creating, creating. Try to create for beauty, meaning and impact. (And revolution everybody please helloooo) And when not doing that, just hang out with the animals and let them teach how to live life well. This is how I’ve spent my days (I try to give back by sharing this magic when I can). Thanks to all the lovely humans, animals and land that have supported me this year, couldn’t do it without you. Especially my partner Alec (too cool for social media) and @emilycopley who I failed to photograph this year but who’s support, collaboration and friendship I couldn’t be doing without. Masses of love and good wishes to you all for 2026 X

I’ve committed more and more in recent years to listening ever more deeply to my horses and their needs. One thing that became too loud to ignore was that my two geldings were bored and needed a better social life. They’re herd animals, after all, and despite the space and rich-experience-filled life I try to offer them, it was still feeling lacking for them and the land they graze as conservation horses. So, one trip to an auction mart in Wales later, and a herd began to form. These fillies are 1.5 and 2.5 years old - just babies. And full of the bright, playful curiosity of the children that they are! One thing I have promised to myself and them is to never attempt to shape/train them in any way that dampens that luminous curiosity. I want to see that light in their eyes shine bright bright bright for all their days. I might not always get it right, but this is the intention. These are the sorts of experiences with the herd that I’m excited to share during our retreat next year. We’ve possibly all had experiences in life that have cost us some of our light, some of our spark. And the strange and beautiful goal of adulthood, I sometimes think, is to find our way back to the bright aliveness we had as young children. Like Ken Smith in my film The Hermit of Treig, with his shiny big planet eyes. There’s a lot we can learn about ourselves in our interactions with animals, especially when combined with deep listening and inner vision. Link to the retreat is in bio. #horses #horseadventure #horseretreat #scottishhighlands #depthpsychology #healing #scotland #horsesofinstagram #healingwithnature #healingwithhorses

It’s here! 🌿🌿🌿 I am proud to announce my retreat with @ofthewiild : The Inner Wild April 25 - May 2nd, 2026 Morvern Peninsula, Scotland An intimate 7 day retreat weaving somatic work, ritual and group process with the magic of the Scottish Highlands. Sign up now for early bird pricing and first choice of rooms! We cannot wait to see you for this once in a lifetime offering.🌿 More about the retreat at www.theinnerwild.co . . . #scottishhighlands #retreat #scotland #horses #scottishretreat

**FILM PREMIERE!** I am really happy to announce that we will be finally releasing the short film made as part of the Forefowk, Mind Me project. The premiere will be on Thursday 10th July at the @scottishstorytellingcentre in Edinburgh. A screening of the film will be followed by a short artist talk with the filmmaker Lizzie Mackenzie, and some chat and a song or two from me! And then a chance to celebrate together with a drink. The film explores the research process behind my album. It follows a journey across Kilmartin Glen with Maisie — a slow and attentive way of travelling that created space to reflect on connections between people, animals, ancestors, and land. The film is about my process, and about how moving with animals informs tradition. I wanted to work with @ofthewiild Lizzie Mackenzie because our affinity to horses and landscape. Lizzie is a self-shooting director-producer from Argyll whose work explores human and non-human existence at the edges of society, with a sensitive and playful approach. Her debut feature film The Hermit of Treig won several awards in the UK and internationally, including a Scottish BAFTA in 2022. For this project, Lizzie brought her eye to the movement of animals through landscapes, and how these rhythms shape our understanding of place. The event will be about an hour long, and is free or by donation. Please sign up for tickets through the @scottishstorytellingcentre website. After the film and talk, the gathering continues with a Hearth Fire Session; a space for shared stories, songs. I will be performing at that with a varied line-up to be announced. Please book your ticket for Hearth Fire Sessions separately.

What does freedom mean to you? Curious to hear peoples’ thoughts on what constitutes a free life, in people and for our animal companions #horses #horsesatliberty #freedom #scottishhighlands

We are exploring the ancient practice of transhumance here in the Scottish Highlands —moving with grazing animals across the land. This isn’t just about livestock management; it’s about rekindling a relationship between land, animal, and human, where all three are seen as alive, interconnected, and mutually nourishing. The role of cattle in history of the Highlands is not to be underestimated. From our (on-going) research, it seems that for at least 5000 years, since the first Bronze Age travellers arrived in Britain with hardy Celtic breeds (that began to compete for grazing with the native Aurochs), we were a cattle society. Life was based around milk, cheese, butter, blood, meat, hide and bone. Healthy cattle meant healthy humans, and rhythm of the year was the rhythm of the cow. We lived with them (often in the same building on winter nights), cared for them, loved and revered them. Our ancestors knew this intimately. As Katherine Stewart writes in Cattle On A Thousand Hills, at Beltane (early May), cattle were driven between two ritual fires, a practice that symbolised protection—against evil spirits and even parasites—before they were led to the lush summer pastures. At Samhain (Hallowe’en), they returned home, a time of feasting and celebration. This ancient dance of movement—of giving land time to rest, of letting animals roam and graze fresh ground—is what we are bringing back. We see it in the way our horses come alive when exploring new pastures, the richness it brings to the soil, and the deep sense of soul connection it offers us. We are not just managing animals. We are participating in an ancient, living tradition—one that heals land, honours the animals, and feeds the human spirit. Follow along as we step into the old ways and see where they lead. #DùsgadhanTrèid #Transhumance #HighlandTraditions #ConservationGrazing #CattleCulture #HorseGrazing #ecologicalrestoration #scottishhighlands #biodiversity #localfutures #animalwelfare

Dear humans, Thanks to the timeless nature of the woods, and Ken’s story, we are so excited to announce that our multi-award winning The Hermit of Treig has inspired some brilliant people in America to bring the film to overseas audiences this April. It all kicks off with a NYC premier tomorrow evening (4th April), followed by a week in NYC. On 11th April we are off to an LA Beverley Hills premier, followed by a week there too! If we sell enough tickets on these opening weekends, we may manage to get the film out all across the states. Yahoooo! All those who saw how much love, care and incredibly hard work went into the making of this film will especially appreciate what this means to the whole team. If you’re in NY or LA right now, here’s a chance step off the busy streets and immerse yourself in a life-affirming different way of being. And if you’re not in these places but know people who are, can you help spread the word? Even convincing just one person to come along will make a difference! Ken; his philosophy, resilience and spirited approach to life, we hope will be medicine to the people of America right now. Link to screenings in bio P.S I’ll be there for opening weekend in both NYC and LA so come say hi! #documentaryfilm @featuredoc #documentarynewyork #quadcinema #naturefilm #hermit #simplelife #scotland #scottishhighlands #tartanweeknyc #tartanweek #scottishfilm #naturelovers #permacultureusa #scotsinamerica #highlander #photography #newyorker #newyorkfilmmaker #newyorkfilmacademy #newyorkphotographer #newyorkfilmclub #naturetherapy #woodlands #cabins #logcabin #filmpremier

Some animals, humans and places that have helped 2024 retain some wildness, where the Spirit Barometer measured high. Lucky stars to count Xx