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.
Oct 3 & 5: Q&A
Presented by
Supported by
Media Partner
Mirza Nikolajev, Zlatan Jakić, Hamza Pleho, Coach Senad Omanović
Canada/Bosnia
2025
In English and Bosnian with English subtitles
Coarse language, violence
Open to youth!
Book Tickets
Credits & Director
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
Ryan Sidhoo
Ryan Sidhoo is an award-winning documentary director and producer whose projects focus on the intersection of identity and culture. Sidhoo produced the feature film Handle with Care, which won the Audience Award at VIFF 2021 and was nominated for three Canadian Screen Awards, including Best Documentary Feature. He won a Webby Award for his directorial work on the series True North and has created short form content for various VICE platforms, along with contributing his skills to industry-leading companies such as Pulse Films, Participant Media, Blowback Productions, Viacom, and NBCUniversal.
Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre
Princess Mononoke
A mystical fight between humans and the Animal Gods of the forest. Ashitaka, the last prince of a dying race, struggles to find a way for both sides to co-exist. But the fighting only becomes more and more bloody and all hope seems to be lost…
Cookie Queens
A documentary about the annual Girl Scouts' cookie sale is probably not high on your list of must-sees, but don't be too sure — this movie is a delight, a rare celebration of girlhood, supportive family relations, and the art of salesmanship.
Jackie Brown
Take half a dozen characters who know they're in a fix, and give them half a million dollars to fight over. Tarantino's crime movie (his best) transcends genre in large part because in Pam Grier and Robert Forster it gives us people we truly care about.
A Simple Machine
Cutting costs, swapping four wheels for two, Nick is downsizing to pay off his student debt. It's a path which leads to savings he had not anticipated, even if his girlfriend thinks he's losing it (and she may be right). A lean, low budget gem.