Living Off-Grid and On-Camera: My Two Months at Project Kamp, Portugal
For the past 1.5 years, I’ve been on a journey, one that’s taken me far from the familiar rhythms of city life and into the heart of intentional communities, sustainable projects, and alternative ways of living. Each stop along the way has offered its own unique lessons, but my recent experience at Project Kamp in Portugal stood out in a very particular way.
Because Project Kamp isn’t just any off-grid community. It’s one with an online presence, over 700,000 YouTube subscribers, to be exact.
A Life Lived on Camera
I arrived as a volunteer, planning to stay for two months. I pitched my tent (definitely outside my comfort zone) and got ready to dig into the daily rhythm of the project: cooking together, building infrastructure, tending the land, and above all, learning what it means to live collectively and intentionally.
But I quickly realized that life at Project Kamp has an extra layer. Nearly everything is filmed.
There are cameras documenting progress, interactions, and behind-the-scenes realities, not just for record-keeping, but for a massive online audience.
Visibility vs. Vulnerability
As a filmmaker myself, I found this fascinating. Project Kamp is telling an important story, about rethinking how we live, using fewer resources, and coming together to build something from scratch. That story deserves to be told.
But I also started wondering: How does this level of visibility shape the actual lives of the people living here? Is it empowering? Is it performative? Is there space for privacy, messiness, or contradiction?
Over my stay, I spoke with fellow volunteers and core team members. Some felt proud to be part of a movement so many people are following online. Others felt a subtle pressure, the pressure to always be “on,” to be inspiring or productive for the audience, even when life off-grid is messy, slow, or uncertain.
Living the Questions
This documentary is the result of my time at Project Kamp, not just as a volunteer, but as someone trying to understand what happens when real-life sustainability meets digital storytelling.
It’s part of a larger series I’ve been working on while traveling through Europe, volunteering with communities, families, and associations who are living in alignment with nature and values. Each place adds a new layer of understanding. What works? What doesn’t? And what can we learn from those brave enough to build a new way of life?
If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to live in an intentional, off-grid project, especially one that’s also a media project, this film is for you.
Did this story peak your interest? Follow Project Kamp on YouTube.
