Welsh Music Prize winner unveils new documentary on award‑winning album
Dafydd Owain reflects on the unexpected creation of Ymarfer Byw in a black‑and‑white film debuting on S4C and iPlayer.
The 2026 Welsh Music Prize has taken a new turn as winner Dafydd Owain will share the story behind his award‑winning album Ymarfer Byw in an upcoming documentary.
Owain, who also collected Welsh Album of the Year at this year’s National Eisteddfod, told the ceremony he had “no intention of writing the album” that secured the prize.
He explained that the record emerged from a period of “quite difficult emotional distress” after his debut Uwch Dros y Pysgod, leaving him “in a very unclear emotional place”.
“There was no intention of writing an album, but I found myself on a journey of trying to work through that emotional uncertainty and, at the same time, I was finding songs along the way,” he said.
The film, titled Dafydd Owain: Ymarfer Byw (I’r Byw), blends a live performance recorded at Galeri Caernarfon in October 2025 with the musician’s personal reflections.
Divided into three acts – Haunted, Cwmpawds and Cheshire Oaks – the documentary mirrors the album’s exploration of grief and mental health.
Owain described the film as “an opportunity to process the ideas behind the album myself, because it had all happened in such a blur”.
He added, “I saw it as a chance for me to process the idea of writing the album; what I had admitted, what I had said, why I had done it.” That was the core of the idea.”
Visually, the production is almost entirely in black and white, a choice meant to echo the artist’s perception of the world during that stormy period.
“When you’re in that storm, your mind becomes very black and white anyway and there isn’t much grey area.” And sometimes it’s in that grey area that healing happens,” Owain explained.
He continued, “When you’re so determined to find an answer or some kind of justice, something to hold on to, your mind becomes very black and white.”
Ymarfer Byw was released on the I KA Ching label in October 2025 and has already amassed a string of accolades, including Best Album at the Y Selar magazine awards.
“The reason I do it is because it’s art,” the musician said, adding, “The reason I call it art is because it’s art for myself rather than for anyone else.” I get something out of sitting down and creating a piece of art that I like from my own feelings.”
The documentary will be broadcast on S4C, S4C Clic and BBC iPlayer on Saturday 10 October at 9 pm, offering viewers a rare glimpse into the creative process that turned personal turmoil into a celebrated work.
Owain’s candid reflections and the stark visual style promise to deepen understanding of an album that has resonated strongly across Wales’s music scene.