Norwegian ‘slow-TV’ follows reindeer herd to the coast

A weeklong 24/7 live broadcast is set to follow a Sami herder family and almost 1,500 reindeer from winter to summer pastures.

Starting Monday evening, a team from the Norwegian broadcasting corporation NRK, will provide TV viewers with amazing pictures of the journey from between Lake Iesjárvi on the Finnmark mountain plateau to Kvalsund on the coast to the Barents Sea.

The 100-kilometer journey (about 60 miles) will take a week, depending on weather.

A team of more than 20 people will film the migration for live broadcast, using a GoPro camera attached to one reindeer, drones filming from the air and other camera crews driving alongside with snowmobiles.

NRK has had great success with Slow TV projects over the last few years. Earlier, shows like “Hurtigruten minute by minute” and “Nordlandsbanen minute by minute” have given the viewers the feeling of being present in real time and space, along the coast and along Norway’s longest railway line.

The reindeer herding show TV has its own portal where updates and track-the-herds-on-map are provided.

At this time of the year, the TV viewers don’t have to worry about lack of light during night time. Although the midnight sun is not yet shining, Finnmark nights are light enough for good views.