Wooden boatbuilding - Faber Navalis: a film by Maurizio Borriello

Restoration of a wooden ship recognized as historical maritime treasure by the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage.
Faber Navalis is Latin for Boatbuilder: words in an ancient language for describing an ancient profession.
It might seem just a video about the restoration of a wooden ship, but the actual subject of this documentary film is the state of mind of its shipwright: an Italian researcher in maritime ethnography who decided to learn boat building skills in order to understand the tacit knowledge hidden behind the construction of a wooden ship.
This film is an experiment in autobiographical ethnography in which the shipwhright is also the filmmaker, at the same time director and directed, both silent artisan and self-aware documentarist: a combination of aesthetics and ethnography which attempts to bring out an inner dimension that may only with difficulty, if it all, be rendered with propositional prose.
I’m an Italian boatbuilder, filmmaker and independent researcher in cultural anthropology.
My major areas of interest are coastal communities, boatbuiding technology and transmission of knowledge. My research interests focus on maritime cultures of the Indian Ocean from ethnographic and archaeological perspectives. This video is a chapter of my lifelong participant observation fieldwork.
After graduating in Asian and African Languages I moved to Indonesia where I had a teaching assignment at State University of Jakarta. In those years I carried out a research project in maritime ethnography on living boatbuilding traditions in S-E Asia collecting data on boat types, construction techniques, local response to the introduction of western technology and its social and cultural effects on the maritime communities. The practical aspects of this fieldwork experience made me realize the limits of my methodology. All those wooden vessels were built "by eye" guided by an intangible knowledge and I considered my "blindness" a problem of epistemological relevance. I felt I couldn't really understand the development of the technology and investigate the transmission of knowledge without acquiring practical boatbuilding skills. Since then much of my time has been spent in boatyards working as apprentice boatbuilder in Tsunami-hit countries, Scandinavia, and the Mediterranean. 
In the last four years I've been working as wooden ship restorer at the maritime museum in Norway. I am also designing an appropriate and versatile technology which attempts to improve traditional boatbuilding. I believe in the potential key role of the boats to reduce isolation improving rural access and mobility through the development of rural water transport.
Boatbuilding, Photography, Editing: Maurizio Borriello
Music: Francesco Di Bella & Ballads Cafè
Assistant Editor: Mauro Milanese
/ fabernavalis
Official Selection and Awards:
San Francisco International Ocean Film Festival (USA) - (WINNER: IOFF 2017 MARITIME AWARD);
New York Craft in Focus Festival (USA);
Taiwan International Ethnographic Film Festival (Taipei - Taiwan);
Napoli Film Festival (Italy);
International Heritage Film Festival (UNESCO - Portugal);
Delhi International Film Festival (India);
Iran International Documentary Film Festival (Tehran - Iran);
Festival Internacional do Filme Etnográfico do Recife (Brazil);
Days of Ethnographic Cinema (Moscow - Russia);
Campania Film Festival Ethnography (Italy) - (WINNER: 2017 DOCUMENTALIA AWARD);
Amsterdam Ambacht in Beeld Festival (Netherlands);
Arctic Moving Image & Film Festival (Norway);
Tartu World Film Festival (Estonia);
Szczecin European Film Festival (Poland);
Apricot Tree International Documentary Film Festival - Ethnography and Anthropology (Yerevan-Armenia);
International Film Festival, Water, Sea and the Ocean (Czech Republic);
IntimaLente - Festival of Visual Ethnography (Italy) (Special Mention);
Riga Pasaules Film Festival (Latvia);
Troia Teatro Festival (Italy);
Whakapapa Film Festival (Italy) (Special Mention);
Open Art Short Film Festival (Germany) (2nd prize for Best Director of Photography and 2nd prize for Best Fine Art Film);
13th Congress of the International Society for Ethnology and Folklore (Göttingen - Germany);
International Documentary Festival of Ierapetra (Greece);
South Sound Traditional Inuit Kayaking Symposium (USA);
Arctic Open International Film Festival (Russia);
Peloponnesian International Film Festival (Greece);
KRAFTA DOC International, Art Making Film Festival (UK);
The Society for Photographic Education Media Festival (USA)

[@andymack5093]

Would love to see more of this wonderful "Faber Navalis" and the most traditional of waterside boatyards, - one can almost smell that timber...... thank you for a great video!

[@Pete-eb4ec]

My dad was a wooden-boat builder. He used to come home on his black motorbike with sidecar, dressed in his long leather jacket with his thick linen bag in which he brought his lunch. He would smell of wood glue and leather. Thanks for the images!

[@smudgey1kenobey]

Wood. Light. Rope. Water. Skill. Perfection!

[@michenji]

Bellissimo. Capolavoro. Complimenti Maurizio

[@staruch46]

Maurizio sei un maestro. Rispetto e grande rispetto

[@superbreastman]

A boatbuilder is not only a boatbuilder. He knows all about woodworking, blacksmithing, picking up lines, lofting, welding, rigging, sailing and who knows...that is true art and all this makes the boatbuilder a very reliable man.

[@fabernavalis]

Thank you Lorenzo

[@richardreynolds9389]

Amazing skill shown in building a wooden boat. Would never believed one man could know so much about wood and construction. Show us the finish of the project as a video. Very good cinematography, very clear how the work was done.

[@bgbendiksen]

This is to date, the most beautiful film about boat building (or in this case, restoration) I have seen. It is made with such love for the work, the boats, the lines and materials, I am blown away. Great work! I have messed around with old boats myself for most of my life, including a few years in the next town over from where this was filmed. I love boats and everything to do with them with a passion, and so does this guy. Bravo!

[@minbari001]

The Thing that is Most Apparent about this Film is LOVE! Love of the Wood, Love of the Art of Shipbuilding, but Above all a Deep Love of the Living wooden Ship, For Perhaps they are one of the most Endearing and Beautiful Constructions that Humanity has ever Devised. I am so Glad that I stumbled onto this Film it has reaffirmed a Passion that has been with me since Childhood, and that in itself is PRICELESS.

[@AddictedtoProjects]

I'm completely blown away by the whole atmosphere of this film. One can see in the photography, that the photographer is also the boat builder, because of the details that he focuses on. Which makes this film all the more exquisite. I happen to have dabbled in photography, and I also enjoy building things with my hands, so I can appreciate both arts! Well done, and I just wish the film never ended. I could watch this for hours! :)

[@mimmoeuz]

Congratulazioni. 33 minuti di grandi emozioni!

[@fabernavalis]

Grazie Mimmo, sono felicissimo che ti sia piaciuto

[@hugomontgoery]

I am a boatwright from Port Townsend, WA. Havnt been at it long. This video is very inspiring! Thank you for sharing.

[@Cutty-sarkOrg]

This is a great film that shows a number of skills and methods that we will be using and wish to help preserve and spread the knowledge through the building of Cutty Sark II. Thank you Maurizio Borriello

[@MrQuilick]

Sublime, ce film est absolument sublime. De part la photographie qui joue avec les contre-jours, les clairs obscurs, les cadrages qui sont subtilement recherchés, il se dégage une ambiance feutrée et de calme. A ce propos ce qui fait son intérêt également c'est le son, on entend que ce qu'il faut entendre, le bruit des outils, des pas des machines, rien ne vient perturber cette atmosphère par une musique ou des paroles. On suit la progression de la réparation sereinement, faite par une personne qui a une très grande compétence dans son métier. Un court-métrage qui devrait être primé à mon humble avis.

[@TheSalMaris]

Thank you Maurizio Borriello. This is a wonderful film.

[@fabernavalis]

Thank you. I am glad that you've enjoyed it!

[@gregleonard1562]

Man didn't flinch when the clamp slipped off the plank and hit the hand. Short sharp shock and grinding teeth. Silent scream. Bravo

[@calicocatist]

From the bottom of my heart I thank you! The sequences,the color,the sound, all blended to make best experience.Why I could smell the wood being sawn and the tar and linseed oil being applied.More,more, more!

[@escope1959]

9:15 Haha. I worked in a fiberglass boat factory on the early 80's. This film is more than just about building boats. This is beautiful. Thank you

[@SLUGGYSS]

Same skills in woodworking than in film making... Wow! Real perfection!

[@nickviner1225]

I was a shipwright long before I retired. .This wonderful film is far more than we did but it does remind me about how hard and heavy the work is. Great work fella.

[@wrightharris4365]

I am blown away. The filming of this build is as artful as th build itself. Cudos on the high quality of the rebuild and the documentation!

[@iamrichrocker]

just beautiful photography..editing..and mood music..a very rare video that captures many emotions..special..

[@jorgeserralucas4724]

I've founded this video by pure luck, but I'm amazed, I really had enjoyed it, now i understand the dificulty of building a boat and how interesting it is. Excellent.

[@flyifri]

A real pleasure in all aspects. Thank you very much.

[@fabernavalis]

Thanks a lot. I am very glad you've enjoyed my film

[@Leblond987]

Incredible photography, enthralling subject! This is what U-tube promises but rarely delivers. Your video 11/ 10.

[@koffov]

You just showed everything that I want to do in my life! Thank you for this half hour of pure happiness!

[@fabernavalis]

+Koff I am really glad to have given you this half hour of pure happiness.

[@BoeroBoy]

This film has everything except dialog. Absolute perfection. I can't look away.

[@MrAluminox]

Superb cinematography. Astounding introduction. I wanted to save the video for later but I was caught at the first images, so I had to watch it entirely...Yes it shows the kind of zen state of mind when being entirely focused and absorbed by the work. And the inner satisfaction when it's done. I'm a former naval carpenter, so I imagine the amount of work required by the Norwegian boat, it's not a piece of cake.

[@UltraFence]

How could anyone give a "thumbs down" to such a work of art. Bravo to you maestro! Obrigado por um belo filme.

[@panos722]

For using the table saw in such an unsafe manner.

[@balyk100]

Здорово всё! Снято профессионально, смотрится на одном дыхании!

[@Fredafghanistan]

Thank-you for your film and work.

[@pparado]

Passion! From both the builder and the cinematographer! Excellent footage!

[@TASMAN-1]

I want this guys job in my next life!

[@fabernavalis]

No reason to wait until the next life;-)

[@charleswhitehead7441]

A beautiful video, very artistic and entertaining

[@robertsalanon2909]

En quelques minutes,tout un savoir faire !! Super ,un énorme métier ...Bravo et encouragements pour la suite ...

[@southjerseysound7340]

Outstanding craftsmanship combined with stunning film work...................Simply perfect.

[@simocapecchi]

Bellissimo! E grazie per la visita guidata di ieri, merita altri disegni, a presto...

[@fabernavalis]

Grazie per i vostri bellissimi disegni. Vi aspetto in cantiere

[@DavidWaeldervideo]

Excellent cinematography!

[@chrisparlow4450]

Yea it is very good and I love the bout build looks like he did most of this him self. Pretty cool. I did a lot of this my self growing up in R.I. Newport working the bout yard's .

[@Mikkel54]

The music at the end is especially brilliant !

[@oceantrolls7332]

Bellissimo! Every minute was a journey. Loved it. Need more please. MORE. Thank you and God Bless.

[@taylornuness]

Fantástica fotografia ...excelente narrativa ... uma bela peça de cinema !! Parabéns Maurizio !!

[@markkubiak8296]

Thank you! A beautiful job making this film. A masterpiece!

[@andrewmcclure2853]

Agree. Brilliant work.

[@tomolavtyssy2500]

it's fun to see how professional you are with what you're doing. there are not many people left in your profession, and you're doing it perfectly well. kind regards, Tyssøy from Sotra

[@raychang9512]

i'm so impressed with the skills and vision you executed every aspect of this video - your shipwright skills, cinematography, editing, sound, lighting... Everything was perfect. My hats off to you.

[@fabernavalis]

Dear Ray Chang, I am very happy you've liked my film and appreciated my work. Thanks a lot for your kind words of encouragement

[@W4ABN]

I could seriously watch this all day. Nice work.

[@SANDROBOX]

Passione Italiana! Great work !

[@zweispurmopped]

That actually was a beautiful and informative little film, much enjoyed! 🤗

[@copper4441]

great movie didn't want it to end could watch for hours

[@normanbrunt2053]

Perhaps for the first time in my life I have some understanding why photography is called an art. The use of shadow to create shapes and the camera positions , often in close-up to creating mini-shapes , grabbed my attention.

[@alcolm1]

Amazing film. Beautifully filmed and edited and an astonsishing display of skills, not to mention patience, by the boat builder. In a world where we are constantly bombarded by the worst that mankind can do this a reminder that there are still plentty of inspirational people out there. I really hope there is a follow up to show the final result

[@Sailboatstory]

Wow. I wasn't at all planning to watch this whole video, but once it started I was hooked till the end. Masterfully done in every way and a pleasure to watch from start to finish.

[@lucienlorenzo7802]

MAESTRO ....! vous êtes un "artiste" qui perpétuer les traditions est le savoir faire !

[@taoistmovies]

Wonderful edition. So many memories and feelings of immediate presence. Welcome back.

[@fabernavalis]

+taoistmovies “He who knows he has enough is rich” (Tao Te Ching, Chapter 33) Less is more. Thank you for your teachings.

[@terrybullock3140]

Until any of us can achieve a fraction of this level of craftsmanship, we are but mere mortals compared to this guy.

[@marcboriss187]

Awesome! I have watched it four times now! Wonderful artwork!

[@alvinolson1]

This is enthralling from chainsaw to door closure. Some wonderful videography using depth of field and scene setup and capture. Inspiring. From Tauranga New Zealand

[@christopherlovelock9104]

A master of his work, - we were all watching a masterpiece being made. - Beyond this words fail me.

[@christopherlovelock9104]

I forgot to add : - Not a computer in sight ..............

[@wasabinguyen]

Thank you. The photography is so beautiful. And so is the music.

[@michaelsteck2851]

Theraputic in a sense, enjoyed it, thank you

[@530eman]

Absolutely fantastic video... very, very visceral and moving... thank you 🙂

[@cristiansegura9726]

Excellent video Maurizio!! I love that as you do .

[@mrdibbles22]

beautifullly shot, great video!

[@alanneumannalvarado2842]

Greetings from Chile. Thanks for documenting something like this. Nice potography & atmosphere!

[@robert566]

I normaly dont comment but this is the best video I have seen in a verry long. thank you

[@hanoitripper1809]

Very enjoyable to see, i am imterested in old technologies in boatmaking

[@adammorkus]

This is art. Breathtaking...

[@federicoeco9030]

Hola buen dia desde Uruguay. Cuando veo tu video y trabajas solo me haces acordar a un amigo carpinterio, a Daniel Díaz de Uruguay.

[@joekimblll1829]

what a craftsman a talent that has damn near gone the feel of the finish tells the end results u watch this mans hand tell him the look what u feel is what u c. u go man no words are perfect.

[@iROBODUDE]

I watch a lot of videos here on KZbin. This is by far one of the best. I will use some of these techniques on my future videos. What a great film. I too did not want it to end. I hope there is a follow on, would love to see the boat finished. I didn't want it to end.

[@pollux6323]

Super film, rempli de technique et d'amour. L'un des meilleurs vus sur le web. Bravo à l'artisan (l'artiste ?) bravo Maurizio et merci kinoiris. Mille pouces bleus !

[@Geckobug_art]

Hi Maurizio, I have watched your film twice tonight. It is beautiful and I hope it is included in film festivals. The film is inspirational - I relate to it as I have built a wooden kayak and dinghy and like working with wood - but it seems more to be a study of a people, almost anthropological. I loved the steady, safe, quiet, contemplative pace of the film and the work. In comments, some have called for a voice over or subtitles. I am glad you did not include these; the film is the richer for the silence and some beautifully planned shots. I actually found the film quite emotional to watch, very expressive. Such as using your hand to plane a fair surface, and this doubling as a connection to the person who installed the original plank so many years ago. Congratulations - I hope your film gets the wider recognition and accolades it deserves. Regards, Ian in NZ

[@fabernavalis]

Dear Ian, thank you very much for dedicating a hour of your life to watch my film and thanks for your kind compliments to my work. This video aims to be an anthropological documentary. A reflexion about the importance of preserving the maritime heritage and traditional skills. I am very glad you've appreciated my choice of letting the silence to narrate the story. In my film I've tried to offer a "Sensory" dimension of my work that may only with difficulty, if it all, be rendered with propositional prose. The great French photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson once said: "To photograph is to put on the same line of sight the head, the eye and the heart." In my experiment, I tried to multiply this formula three times putting on the same line of sight the head, the eye and the heart of a shipwright, a filmmaker, an ethnographer. I am very gratified by your supportive encouragement. Thanks!

[@MrRonwroblewski]

you do a GREAT JOB setting up your shots

[@lesyastepanchuk8922]

Loved the tag ( if God wanted boats outa fiberglass he would have planted fiberglass trees) bravo to the guy who came up with that one

[@thatguy2248]

Completely astonished, your an inspiration

[@playaspec]

Fantastic work! *Gorgeous* cinematography! Thanks you.

[@fabernavalis]

Thanks, I am very happy you've appreciate my film work

[@MrSara46]

Grazie per averlo condiviso, lavoro eccelente!Complimenti!

[@fabernavalis]

Grazie per avermi dedicato mezz'ora del tuo tempo

[@mynextketchfrontier6351]

Definitely you have skills boat building and everything all else,that been said also grate optic I like the shot at the corner of the building with the sun shining at the top you got a good camera skills,great clips I appreciate them. Thank you

[@muja28]

Great camerawork and editing opened my mind to boat building

[@arvydas5076]

I don't cnow nothing about cinema,jost i cnow this is realy realy realy god an nice job,your job!!! I have wood boat,and for me this your job is fantastic☺Thank you!!!

[@GennaroDiLerniaunita36]

Veramente bravi come ripresa e lavoro, si impara veramente!!! Ancora ancora!!!

[@markhill880]

Wonderful! I hope you receive (or have received) an award for this beautiful work.

[@fabernavalis]

Thank you very much Mark. I haven't made this film thinking about any festival or award. I am very happy to see so many people liking my work.

[@goneinsixtyseconds80]

More please, Loved it! Great job, It's nice to the old ways not cast aside by next generation. Thanks!

[@robertoaprile2325]

Gran bel film. Bella musica e immagini. Complimenti

[@johncollins6023]

Beautiful video! Very relaxing.

[@wojtekkwasidowski6137]

Excellent professional and beautiful photos

[@normanmerrill1241]

Amazing skill, knowledge and patience…beautiful work…stay safe…

[@esalva1948]

Absolutely fabulous cinematography and the craftsman is a master artisan and boatbuilder, please find someone to teach these skills to. The type of skills and patience necessary to do these types of work are rapidly disappearing. It was indeed my privilege to watch this video and I enjoyed it immensely.

[@tonioarks7264]

Avui he descobert aquest curt , molt seriós i definitori de un ofici ,el mestre d'aixa ,el treball de camera genial ,salut.

[@theprofessorfate6184]

Great video. Hope to see more. That boat should keep you busy for a year or so.

[@kristjake]

Remarkable creation!

[@thambisking36]

Great man , jack of all trade.

[@alancooke1131]

Enthralled from start to finish!

[@fabernavalis]

+Alan Cooke Thanks Alan, it's nice to know that you've enjoyed my film

[@mikkelbdker7186]

Excellent cinematography - skide godt og humoristisk fremlagt - bravissimo

[@Mardagan88]

stunning video, great eye with the camera. I was fascinated from moment one to the end.

[@fabernavalis]

+Jeremy Whittaker Thanks a lot Jeremy. I am very happy that you've enjoyed my film

[@shananagans5]

Beautiful!! Great film, great craftsmanship, great atmosphere. I could watch hours of this.

[@GunnarHolmstad]

Thank you for making this beautfil film, Maurizio!

[@GunnarHolmstad]

+Gunnar Holmstad Err - I meant BEAUTIFUL :)

[@fabernavalis]

Thanks to you Gunnar. Nice to know that you like my film.

[@chrismaggio7879]

I've watched this twice. I now want to go build a boat! Maybe I should watch a third time, then discuss with my wife.

[@pauldillon4056]

Just loved it what skill and craftsmanship

[@rapidrrobert4333]

The sound of a plane going through wood = music of the woodshop.

[@nealcutlet9374]

masterfully done in every detail

[@bobbyjohnnascar]

Very nice video! Nice work! Looks like more than a one man job.