Reindeer Slaughter at Lake Krutvattner

This film documents the slaughtering of reindeer by Norwegian and Swedish Sami (Lapps) on Lake Krutvattnet in Norway, close to the Swedish border.
It records some of the steps involved in the slaughtering of reindeer: driving the herd into the enclosure, catching and killing them (with a knife or a bolt gun). The all-pervasive theme is the rhythm and the movement of the reindeer herd, the mass of animal bodies that, from daybreak to dusk, circle around in a continuous cycle. At time slow motion is utilized to capture the gentle rhythm of the reindeers’ movements: their bodies are in close harmony with nature, flowing along like water across the countryside. The idea of the film dates back to the years 1956-59 when I worked on archeological excavations in Lapland and the very first time I photographed a reindeer roundup slaughter. What still remains most vivid from this experience is the giddying leap between life and death. – L.O.