Skip to main content
Hills and Mountains film image, director Salar Pashtoonyar

Hills and Mountains

Filmed on location in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, an Afghan woman recalls how the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan led to her forced displacement and marriage.

 

Supported by

Community Broadcast Partner

Community Partner

Director
Cast

Fereshta Afshar

Credits
Country of Origin

Canada

Year

2022

Language

In Dari with English subtitles

Film Contact
Content Warning

Gender or Sexual Discrimination

G
8 min

Featured in:

Horse Brothers film image

VIFF Short Forum: Program 3

The camera eye knows no bounds in these stories that push the limits of gravity and grace.

 

MORE INFO

Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre

The Musicians

Dir. Grégory Magne
102 min

Brought together to perform a specially commissioned piece, a string quartet of virtuoso musicians descends into squabbling and animosity in this classy French comedy.

VIFF Centre - VIFF Cinema

The Nutcracker at Wethersfield

Dir. Annie Sundberg
83 min

Back in the long, dark Covid winter of 2020, there was no way the New York City Ballet could mount their traditional Christmas production of Tchaikovsky's fairytale. But choreographer Troy Schumacher had a dream to save the show -- reimagining a classic.

VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre
More info

Sold Out

Auction

Dir. Pascal Bonitzer
91 min

Inspired by a true story, writer-director Pascal Bonitzer has crafted an inquiring, witty drama about the art market. When a long-lost Egon Schiele masterpiece reemerges, art appraiser Alex is initially skeptical. And yet...

VIFF Centre - VIFF Cinema VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre

The Tale of Silyan

Dir. Tamara Kotevska
81 min

From Oscar-nominee Tamara Kotevska (Honeyland), this is a poetic, curious and enchanting non-fiction fable about a farmer's son who turns into a stork.

VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre

Weapons

Dir. Zach Creggar
128 min

Why did a whole class of pre-teens (barring one kid) simultaneously disappear in the middle of the night? In what has been a banner year for horror films, Zach Creggar's Weapons is a film of outstanding originality and flair.

VIFF Centre - VIFF Cinema

La venue de l'avenir

Dir. Cédric Klapisch
124 min

Four cousins are tapped to investigate an abandoned house that is their joint inheritance. As they explore, they learn their story of their ancestor Adele (Suzanne Lindon) and her foray into Paris in the age of Impressionism.

VIFF Centre - Lochmaddy Studio Theatre VIFF Centre - VIFF Cinema

Credits

Producer

Salar Pashtoonyar

Screenwriter

Salar Pashtoonyar

Cinematography

Parwiz Arify

Editor

Jalal Shams

Director

Salar Pashtoonyar headshot, Hills and Mountains director

Salar Pashtoonyar

Salar Pashtoonyar is originally from Afghanistan and now based in Canada. As a director, his films have screened at festivals worldwide, including Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, and Palm Springs International ShortFest. After growing up as a refugee due to the wars in Afghanistan, he now explores the lives of ordinary people that deal with abnormal situations. Pashtoonyar holds degrees in Film Production from Toronto Film School and York University. His film Bad Omen (2020) was nominated for Best Canadian Short at the Canadian Screen Awards, and won the Bronze Medal at the 2021 Student Academy Awards.