To Hold a Mountain
Biljana Tutorov & Petar Glomazić / Spain, France, Montenegro, Slovenia & Croatia / 2026 / European Premiere / 105 min
This year's Sundance winner is a sensual and down-to-earth portrayal of the lives of a woman and a young girl in the mountains of Montenegro, which are in danger of becoming a NATO training area.
Manual labor, the changing seasons, the cycle of life. This is a cinematic experience where the elementary things receive the attention that turns a small story into an epic tale. High up in the mountains of Montenegro lives 13-year-old Nada with the adult Gara, who we might believe to be her mother. They live off and with their cows, which are sent out to graze when the time comes. But beneath the timeless idyll, dangers lurk.
There are rumors of wolves. The local authorities are planning to use the area as a NATO training camp. And then Nada’s father is soon to be released from prison for a terrible crime – and Gara is afraid that he will come looking for them once he is free. The directing duo Biljana Tutorov and Petar Glomazić won the documentary award at this year’s Sundance Film Festival for a lyrical film with a powerful undercurrent of lurking seriousness. Nada and Gara are unforgettable, and with their great love for their animals and surroundings, they stand in quiet opposition to the violence and power of the world.
