Mountain Onion
11-year-old Jabai, who sells mountain onions with his sister on the border highway catches his trucker idol having sex with Jabai’s mom.
Jabai goes to China for the miraculous Viagra, which will help Father to become strong..
Festivals (selected)
Venezia 79 - Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica 2022, Italy - World Premiere
Bastau International Film Festival 2022, Kazakhstan
Red Sea Film Festival 2022, Saudi Arabia
New York Asian Film Festival 2023, USA
Raindance Film Festival 2023, UK
Awards
Ischia Film Festival 2023, Italy - Best Film Award
Film Festival della Lessinia 2023, Italy - Prize from the Giudecca Jury of the Venice Prison
Tripoli Film Festival 2023, Lebanon - Best Feature Film Award
Festival du Film Kazakh 2023, France - Best Director Award
Director's statement
Men Can Cry; Women Can Get Angry. Mountain Onion is the feel good movie which tells that first of all you need to listen to your inner voice and follow your feelings, and only then listen to others.
The idea for the film came to me when I was driving along a highway near the border with China and saw how a father, mother and son, about 11 years old, were riding the same tiny motorcycle. And I thought they were a happy family. But then I remembered my parents. That when they were about to get divorced from the outside, one might think that they were happy together. And I thought, maybe these parents on a motorcycle are not happy either, but this boy just doesn’t know it yet.
It was important for me to tell the story from the point of view of the children of Saniya and Jabai, since, like the heroes of the film, I went through the process of divorce of my parents. This is a very difficult time and it seems that there is no happiness around and everything is over. But it’s not. Life goes on and your parents will not stop loving you even if they live separately.
After the death of my father, thinking about that divorce time for a long time, I began to understand that the time when my parents was in the separation process was also a time of happiness. Peculiar, but happy. We were still a family.
Therefore, I wanted to make a feel good movie in which it seems to children that their parents will be together no matter what happens. And perhaps this hope will be transmitted to the audience.
Eldar Shibanov
DIRECTOR / writer
Yuliya Levitskaya
Producer / co-writer
Dias Shibanov
PRODUCER
Reviews
Mountain Onion - this is a world in which hope never dies, love conquers all and happy endings are pretty much guaranteed.
Nikki Baughan
Boasting great performances from all involved—especially Amantay as our pint-sized hero—Mountain Onion is a true treat that signifies Shibanov and family as a team to watch in world cinema.
Lee Jutton
Screen Daily
