In Orgòsolo, a town in the harsh granite mountains at the center of the island of Sardinia, a peasant is suspected of murder following an encounter with bandits. In order to survive, he has no option but to turn to banditry himself.

Famed for his documentary shorts about Sicilian fishermen, Vittorio De Seta set his gaze on another vanishing trade in his shattering feature debut. Rendered as ant-like figures against Sardinia’s majestic mountains, the film’s roaming shepherds wage a desperate battle against the cycle of violence.