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The Track film image; two people standing in a graffitied concrete skate park

The Track

In the middle of a mountain forest above Sarajevo, an Olympic luge track lies abandoned and neglected since the 1984 Winter Games, covered with graffiti and riddled with bullet holes from the Yugoslav Wars. It’s here that three teenage boys — Hamza, Mirza, and Zlatan — dream of competing in luge as a way out of a country still suffering from old wounds. Their devoted coach, Senad, volunteers his time to maintain the track and train the boys, but the pursuit of their Olympic dreams is challenged by a lack of institutional and financial support, and as time passes, the boys’ lives begin to diverge.

Centred on a struggle for purpose and meaning, director Ryan Sidhoo’s documentary digs into the boys’ lives and aspirations, revealing a depth of personal emotional responses amidst sociopolitical issues in Bosnia and Herzegovina. An ambitious, clear-eyed, and hopeful look at the next generation striving to clear out the rubble from the past and overcome the sins of their fathers.

Director

Ryan Sidhoo

Featuring

Mirza Nikolajev, Zlatan Jakić, Hamza Pleho, Coach Senad Omanović

Credits
Country of Origin

Canada/Bosnia

Year

2025

Language

In English and Bosnian with English subtitles

19+
91 min
Spirit of 84 Films LTD

Book Tickets

Friday January 16

3:10 pm
Hearing Assistance Subtitles
VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre
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Saturday January 17

1:00 pm
Hearing Assistance Subtitles
VIFF Centre - VIFF Cinema
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Sunday January 18

12:00 pm
Hearing Assistance Subtitles
VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre
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Tuesday January 20

6:00 pm
Hearing Assistance Subtitles
VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre
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Credits

Executive Producer

Ryan Sidhoo, Graham Withers

Producer

Ryan Sidhoo

Screenwriter

Ryan Sidhoo, Graham Withers

Cinematography

Jesse McCracken, Alen Alilović, Almir Djikoli, Ervin Golubović, Leigh Lisbão Underwood, Will Pugh

Editor

Graham Withers

Original Music

Edo Van Breemen, Johannes Winkler

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