Polar Star Films’ latest documentary short, When the Mountain Rumbles, has completed production.  Directed by emerging Catalan filmmaker, Alba Bresolí, the film tells the story of three ageing brothers who must face up to an uncertain future and the inevitable end to years of self-imposed isolation. The abandoned village of Escó in Aragón Spain, where they have lived all their lives, is today facing its second threat of extinction.

In 1959, under Franco’s regime, Escó was expropriated for the planned construction of the Yesa Reservoir. The village was abandoned by all but one family, the Guallars, who refused to leave behind their home and livestock. Today, brothers Evaristo, Félix and Baltasar Guallar live alone in Escó, grazing their sheep and sharing the same bedroom assigned to them as children. However, their beloved village, now in ruins, is under threat again. The construction of a motorway to the Pyrenees is underway. It will eventually cut through Escó making the brothers isolated lives impossible. What will be the final fate of the Guallar family and the curious place they call home?

When the Mountain Rumbles is Alba Bresolí’s first collaboration with Polar Star Films. She has made two short films, CUENCAS (2018) and DOMUS (2020), the latter having screened at festivals internationally.

When the Mountain Rumbles is a Polar Star Films documentary short film production made with the support of ICEC and ICAA.