A new feature-length documentary produced by the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC) turns its attention to forests not as abstract carbon sinks, but as lived landscapes shaped by long-term human stewardship.

Directed by Czech filmmaker Petr Krejčí, Forested Future is a 91-minute documentary set largely within the Appalachian hardwood forests of the eastern United States. Inspired by environmental journalist Fred Pearce’s book A Trillion Trees, the film follows foresters, landowners, artisans and ecologists whose lives and work are embedded in forest economies and ecosystems.

Rather than focusing on technological solutions to climate change, Forested Future centres on questions of time and responsibility. Through interviews and observational footage, the film contrasts short-term human decision-making with the slower cycles of forest growth, arguing for approaches to land management that operate over decades and centuries rather than years.

Krejčí describes the project as an attempt to reconnect audiences with the origins of the materials used to build and furnish cities. As urbanisation increases, the documentary suggests, so too does a disconnect between people and the landscapes that supply timber, fuel and shelter. By foregrounding forestry practices and community knowledge, the film positions forests as working environments as well as ecological systems.

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While produced by AHEC, the documentary does not function as a technical guide to forestry or a promotional catalogue of products. Instead, it presents a series of perspectives on land stewardship, reforestation and material use, inviting architects, designers and builders to reflect on how wood is managed and specified.

David Venables, European director of AHEC, notes that the film is intended to encourage more informed conversations about timber rather than discourage its use outright. In a cultural context where deforestation narratives often dominate, Forested Future highlights cases where forest cover has increased through long-term management, while stopping short of claiming universal solutions.

The documentary has screened at several European film festivals, including the Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival and Barcelona’s BARQ International Architecture Film Festival. Its UK premiere took place at the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London in November 2025. The film is available in multiple languages, with further screenings and an online release planned.

Forested Future will likely resonate with design audiences grappling with questions around material ethics, sustainability and responsibility. Rather than prescribing answers, it offers a lens through which to consider how forests, people and the built environment remain entangled.

Forested Future
forestedfuture.film

AHEC
americanhardwood.org

Film and photography
Petr Krejčí