Shepherds
"Shepherds" shows how cattle are a constitutive element of the entire social life in Lesotho, a tiny country enclaved within the territory of South Africa. Cows have a deeply symbolic and material significance, and owning them is thus of very great value. The film was made in a jail where cattle thieves are held. They relate episodes from their lives and talk about why they are there.
The film shows the psychological drama of shepherds from Lesotho, some of whom were sentenced to 9 years in prison for having stolen cows. This film caught the attention of the Ecumenical Jury for the originality of the theme, the love of a community of Lesotho for cows, for professionalism in photography direction and image aesthetics, the silences which invite the spectator to meditation. The film shows the value of cows in the lives of members of this community. But it also draws public attention to the gap between the wrongdoing and the punishment.