To Hold a Mountain

On Montenegro’s remote Sinjajevina plateau, Gara and her thirteen-year-old daughter Nada return each summer to their ancestral pastures, where they herd animals, gather herbs, and live in symbiosis with the mountain they call “”””Mother.”””” Their fragile world comes under threat when the government advances plans for a NATO-backed military training ground in the heart of this protected landscape.

As helicopters descend and the community fractures under pressure, Gara emerges as an unexpected leader in the struggle to defend Sinjajevina. For Nada, the fight for the mountain is inseparable from a more intimate journey. Raised by Gara after her biological mother was murdered by her father, she begins confronting the legacy of violence that shaped her family. Filmed over seven seasons, To Hold a Mountain weaves environmental resistance with an intimate story of motherhood, resilience, and healing.