The Mountain Wagtail | SproutsFF24

The Mountain Wagtail | Jylkychy chymchyk by Begaly Nargozu

eco competition | Dutch premiere | 2023 | Kyrgyzstan | 141’

Young Altyn eagerly leaves pastoral life behind for the modern comforts of the capital, but soon finds a corrupted society clashing with the values of her ancestors when confronted with an unexpected pregnancy. Mine development, melting glaciers and the loss of tradition are prominent symptoms of the current transformation of Kyrgyzstan, a country not often represented on the big screen. 

*All Sprouts films are with English subtitles

Sprouts Film Festival 2024 | May 7-12

In times of a glitching world, with weather extremes and inhumane conflicts intensifying, it can be tempting to avert your gaze. Instead, Sprouts wants to make the cinema a site for peaceful protest by showing newly released ecocinema and socially critical debut films. All selected features and shorts are fiction, because it is our belief that through the power of imagination we can alter our behaviour for the better and rethink our relationship with the more-than-human world. We are here to make you wonder, to inform, to spark resistance and to nurture fresh talent.

SproutsFF24, our third edition, will be bigger than ever. Our festival locations this year are Studio/K, MACA, Kriterion and Zone2Source. Want to learn more about our SproutsFF24 programme, which also includes a free Eco Expo, a queer club night and a live ecological AV-show? Go to sproutsfilmfestival.com or follow us on Instagram @sproutsfilmfestival and Letterboxd @sproutsff.

* All features are in competition for the Audience Award. Please do not forget to cast your vote on the way out!