The Mountain Won't Move – Films

Petra Seliškar
Slovenia, North Macedonia, France | 2025 | 94 min
World premiere
Languages : Albanian, Macedonian
Subtitles : French, English

On the heights of a mountain in North Macedonia, in the midst of a flock of 600 sheep being watched over by huge dogs, stands a refuge. Children's laughter escapes from the precarious shelter. They are a brotherhood, ranging from ages eight to twenty. When they are not hard at work, they are playing and discussing the meaning of life. Is their future really here?

On the heights of a mountain in North Macedonia, in the midst of a flock of 600 sheep watched over by a dozen huge dogs, stands a refuge. Children's laughter escapes from the precarious shelter. When they are not working, the five Zekirov brothers, aged eight to twenty, play and discuss the meaning of life. Rather than following a single shepherd over several years, Seliskar adopts long observation as her approach, capturing different occurrences of each character, spanning different ages, each with their own illusions and needs. Just like their faithful pack of dogs, the older ones wield more strength and responsibility, but approach their duties as tired rituals, while the younger ones are allowed to enjoy, observe and learn. To add to the film's tenderness, the narrative is not arranged according to the dramaturgy of the seasonal weather; instead, we meet our protagonists, human and non-human, in the sweetest of summers, when, as the flock gently grazes, the boys can lie in the grass and indulge their thoughts: if the mountain won't move, perhaps they will have to.

Sergio Fant

The Mountain Won't Move, 2025
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Farewell, 2020
My World Is Upside Down, 2016
Mama Europa, 2014
The Grandmothers of the Revolution, 2006
Babice revolucije, 2006