37 Frames“To see the world, things dangerous to come to, to see behind walls, to draw closer, to find each other and to feel. That is the purpose of life.” – The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
Some films entertain. Some make you cry. And then some, rare, remarkable, life-altering, pull something out of your soul you didn’t even know was buried there. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is that film for us.
And we don’t say that lightly. We say that as people who live inside stories. As planners, photographers, filmmakers, professional moment-makers. People whose entire existence is about curating the extraordinary for others. But here’s the twist: Mitty makes us stop. Breathe. And remember to create magic for ourselves, too.
A Story About Stepping Into the Frame
Walter is the ultimate behind-the-scenes guy. A negative assets manager at Life magazine (is there a more poetic title?), quietly archiving the most stunning moments of humanity, but never quite living them. Sound familiar?
It’s a curious thing, being a creator. You get so good at orchestrating unforgettable scenes, you almost forget to feel your own life unfolding. Mitty reminds us that the real adventure begins when we choose to stop being the observer and become the subject.
Iceland: Our Cinematic Love Affair
Let’s talk location. Walter Mitty isn’t just a narrative, it’s a visual pilgrimage. And Iceland? She steals the show. Wild, rugged, otherworldly, Iceland is a character all her own. And yes, we’ve chased those landscapes. We’ve driven that stretch of road where Walter skateboards toward something unknown, wind in his face, freedom in his wake. We’ve stood at that volcano. Wandered those hills. Watched sheep slow traffic on the Ring Road.
Seven or eight visits later, Iceland still moves us. Still dares us to dream differently. Because those volcanic plains and foggy fjords don’t just whisper adventure, they demand you listen.
And here’s a little fun fact. Remember the quirky Papa John’s-like burger joint in the film? In real life, it’s actually a bakery in Stykkishólmur. Not just any bakery, our bakery. It’s become our little ritual: every trip, we stop there. We grab a pastry, watch the weather roll in over the harbor, and sit down to philosophize. About life. About art. About the journey we’re on. It’s become part of our personal Mitty myth.
Living Between Reel and Real
Here’s the thing about Walter Mitty: it’s not fantasy. It’s permission. It’s the quiet nudge toward a life where awe is non-negotiable. Where you leap before you have all the answers. Where you say yes to the skateboarding, shark-jumping, mountain-climbing version of yourself. Even if you still have inboxes to check.
The film echoes what we know to be true in our bones: that wonder isn’t something you photograph, it’s something you feel.
The year this film came out? 2013. We remember it vividly. It wasn’t just a movie premiere, it was a turning point. It was the year we realized we needed to live life, not just curate it. That we could no longer just help others experience magic, we had to carve out our own. And we have lived with our own Mitty mantra ever since: not merely existing, but fully, unapologetically living.
We changed everything. We took risks. Big ones. Expanded the business across continents. Said yes to the wild and the weird. Laughed harder. Grieved deeply. Made things. Burned out. Came back. Reinvented. Reimagined. Always chasing meaning. Always chasing the feeling that life is supposed to feel like something.
The Meaning of Life, According to Mitty (and Definitely Us Too)
Mitty is more than a quirky adventure story. It’s a meditation on what it means to matter. What it means to feel small in a giant world, but not insignificant. The film explores themes that mirror our own guiding compass:
- Presence over performance
- Connection over consumption
- Curiosity over comfort
- Depth over doing it for the ‘gram
And it’s not subtle about it either. There’s the photographer Sean O’Connell refusing to take a picture of the elusive snow leopard, because “sometimes I don’t take the picture. If I like a moment… I stay in it.” That line? Tattooed on our hearts. A reminder that life isn’t just for the highlight reel, it’s for the soul.
Walter’s journey is deeply existential. It’s about embracing the unknown. Shedding fear. Letting go of control. It’s about choosing a meaningful, imperfect, unfiltered life over a safe one.
The Namibia Connection
So what does this have to do with Namibia? Everything.
In a few days, we’ll trade Japan’s summer for Namibia’s epic sandscapes. The wind-whipped dunes of Sossusvlei. Star-splattered skies above Damaraland. Desert elephants, dead-tree valleys, endless silence that roars with meaning. It’s another Mitty moment. Another intentional choice to live a story worth remembering.
Namibia will be remote. Stark. Demanding. Exactly the kind of place Walter would go when the world stopped making sense. Exactly the kind of place we go when we want to remember who we are.
Namibia is unknown terrain for us. And that’s the point. It’s the skateboarding down the volcano. It’s jumping onto a helicopter because your gut says go. It’s doing the thing not for the photo, but because the story is already waiting to be lived.
And yes, we will be photographing it. Filming it. Documenting it. But first and foremost, we’ll be living it.
Every year, we choose one destination to experience with full intention. A yearly adventure that grounds us, reawakens us, and gives us a moment to be in our own frame. Namibia just happens to be this year’s journey.
Why This Story Matters
Because we’ve spent decades telling other people’s stories. Because we’ve held the hands of couples as they begin forever. Because we know what it means to make every second count.
And sometimes, the ones who craft memories for others need to make their own. With the same intentionality. The same awe. The same camera-strapped-to-your-back, just-jump spirit that turned Walter from watcher to wanderer.
So here’s to Iceland. To Namibia. To every wild place that dares us to feel again.
Here’s to the bakery in Stykkishólmur, where pastries and philosophy go hand in hand. To the foggy fjords that remind us of the film that changed our lives. To skateboards, volcanoes, Life magazine, and snow leopards hiding in plain sight.
And here’s to Walter Mitty, our unlikely muse, reminding us that the most beautiful moments are the ones we live fully.
See you out there. In the story.
📍 Planning, Photography & Films by 37 Frames
✈️ Iceland veterans. Namibia bound. Forever Mitty at heart.
#lifeelevated #mittymoments #icelandtales #namibianarratives #adventureawaits #37frames #liveyourstory #reellife #stykkisholmurphilosophy
See a favourite 37 Frames wedding here: A celebrity wedding in Hawaii
37 Frames
