Deep in the Siberian taiga, two feuding families live on opposite banks of a river. Part of an ancient sect of the Russian Orthodox Church, the villagers reject the authority of the state and live by their own rules and principles. There are no roads leading here; the village can be reached only by helicopter.
Stretching as far as the eye can see, the immense forest is both a resource and a threat: wild animals come close to villagers’ homes; every year, climate change intensifies the threat of fire. Against this backdrop, this evocative film traces the tensions and possibilities of building a community in a remote and rapidly changing environment.
Image credit: Braguino, dir. Clément Cogitore, 2017