"Y Crwydryn"
S4C reveals the first look images from its new feature documentary film "Y Crwydryn" ("The Wanderer"), which will air in Welsh, with English subtitles, on S4C, S4C Clic and BBC iPlayer on Boxing Day.
Presenter Wil Tân, known in Wales as a singer and champion of Welsh country music, embarks on a pilgrimage to the small rural towns across Wales humming with country music and its culture.
Filmed in the widescreen spirit of a Western, the road becomes both stage and confessional, where music replaces words men cannot say. Anchored by two haunting refrains — Carrickfergus with Pete, and Crwydryn for his mother — and much gallows humour, the film is a meditation on masculinity, silence and the ways song becomes both shield and surrender.
Llinos Wynne, S4C’s Head of Docs & Specialist Factual said: “As it’s Men’s Mental Health Awareness Month, there is no better time to announce details of this beautiful and tender exploration of some of life’s biggest subjects. Older men can find it difficult to talk openly about loss, grief and love, but as this film so delicately shows, country music can open doors to people’s most profound experiences. We are extremely proud of the worldwide critical response to the film, and are very excited to share it with audiences at home, this Christmas.”
This slow-paced gem was a smash hit among film festivals earlier this year, winning five awards inc. Best Feature Documentary at Bournemouth International Film Festival and Rohip International Film Festival. It was a finalist at both the Folkestone Film Festival and the By the River Film Festival, a nominee at the Cannes World Film Festival and was selected at IndieLisboa International Film Festival.
Producer Gwion Tegid said: “We’re incredibly proud of the way 'Y Crwydryn' has been received internationally. From the start, our aim was to make a Welsh film that spoke to universal themes — love, loss, friendship and resilience — and it’s been heartening to see those messages resonate so widely. I’m deeply grateful to S4C and to Llinos Wynne for giving us the time and trust to let this story breathe and find its own rhythm; that patience is what allows a documentary to truly come alive. And my heartfelt thanks go to Rhys Edwards, whose beautiful cinematography captures the soul of this journey so powerfully.”
"Y Crwydryn" ("The Wanderer") is a DocShed production for S4C. It was commissioned for S4C by Llinos Wynne, Head of Docs and Specialist Factual. Gwion Tegid is Producer and Rhys Edwards Director.