Powered by a lifelong curiosity to explore remote Norway, and driven by the desire to do so together with his growing son Finn before he flies the nest, Ocean with David Attenborough cinematographer Toby Strong journeyed to the frozen north in an Arksen Defender as 2025 drew to a close – and the result was a truly emotive film of personal exploration.

Toby and Finn travelled 5,000 miles from their home in the UK, with their compass leading them to the Lofoten Islands, a granite spit of mountains, sharp and ancient, sitting just north of the Arctic Circle. Travelling across frozen high passes of Sweden and Norway, the overland vehicle’s headlights pierced a constant trail, guiding their way through ever-lasting twilight.

Toby – who describes himself as “a nomad at heart” – has a list of credits that span across decades, aligned with some of the most legendary natural world shows, films and icons. His list of Emmy and Bafta awards and nominations alone includes Blue Planet 2, Planet Earth 2, Human Planet, Warlords of Ivory and the Secret Life of Elephants.

He has filmed with Sir David Attenborough on many occasions and even with Prince William for the Earthshot prise. His endless journeys have taken him around the world multiple times over, to remote regions including Mongolia, Madagascar, Bolivia and to both ends of the Earth, the Arctic and Antarctica. There are few places he has left to visit.

This journey, however, was very different. This was personal. A journey of self-exploration. To discover how his own curiosity has fuelled his adventures. And to impart some of that on Finn. To show him the wild. The beauty and freedom of exploration. A final chance to share a journey before the pair both return to reality.

Along the way, they re-united with old friend Andrea, met previously in the Pacific on another of life’s adventures, but here now to help explain her own ancestral land. Sat around a crackling camp fire, the trio discussed the Sami and the trials and challenges of a life lived in the frozen extremities of our planet, right on the edge of Europe.

The long journey north came to its turn-around point amidst the blood-red fishing huts that cluster on the water’s edge all around the Lofoten archipelago. This mystic location brought Toby to recall the mythological figures of Odin, the chief; Loki, the cunning trickster; and Freya, the goddess of love, beauty and magic.

“Oden, Loki and Freya still breathe here,” he says in the film’s narration. “And maybe like the great Norse Wolf Fenrir, things must be destroyed and end before they can be reborn in Spring.”

On the shortest day, when the sun does not rise, this is a reflection of life’s never-ending regeneration. Just as Toby once took his first tentative steps as a filmmaker, ultimately to become one of the world’s greats, so Finn now begins to do the same as a chef and filmmaker, curious to explore where his journey’s compass will take him.

Where will your compass take you? Explore more of our declaration of intent, Compass for the Curious. Find out about more projects from Multi Emmy/BAFTA Cinematographer Tony Strong and his son Finn, via their social channels.

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