OUR FOREST MOON – NUESTRO MONTE LUNA – NOTRE LUNE DES BOIS

a film by Pablo Alvarez Mesa

 

1 x 52  / 1 x 90
 

in development

Delivery: 2015

 

Colombia’s harsh social realities are revealed in the intimate world of teenagers who grow up in the bullfighting plaza, training to be Matadors.

 

The tiny Colombian town of Choachi is nestled into the countryside, an hour’s drive across a mountain road from Bogota. Stepping off the bus from the Capital city, 17 year-olds José Luis and Daniel greet Sebastian, who solemnly hands his friends two swords. Together, the three young men make their way through the village, weapons glinting in the sunlight, proudly nodding to townspeople on their way to Choachi’s Plaza, to train at the bullfighting school. Coach Nicolas Nossa is there waiting for them and a contented smile spreads across his face as he sees his boys approaching. His wrinkled eyes see not teenagers, but the future Matadors of Colombia, and the saviours of Bullfighting.

 

In a rapidly changing country, in a culture trying to move away from its violent past and colonial legacy, a group of young men have decided to immerse themselves completely in the dying tradition of bullfighting, a bloody and elite activity dominated by wealthy landowners. OUR FOREST MOON is a poetic and intimate story about dreaming the impossible: to break through Colombia’s stringent social and class barriers by following virtues of discipline, commitment and passion. Bullfighting is the backdrop, and a constant reminder of personal struggles they all face trying to grow up and get ahead in Colombia.

 

Colombian-Canadian filmmaker Pablo Alvarez Mesa returns to his homeland to follow a group of young boys and girls who share a dream for a better future in the midst of a highly politicised and historically violent country. Through powerful cinema verité moments that speak volumes about the trust he has established with this tight-knit community, Pablo’s intimate filmmaking style brings across all the hope and aggression of youth at a crossroads. Interpreting bullfighting as a living metaphor of the personal, cultural and historical struggles, the film focuses on the individual experiences of these boys and their mentor, and while they train and prepare to fight bulls in the ring, they are already in the tough bullfight of life.

 

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