Cavaliers du ciel
Julien Naar
2017 - 52 min - Video Ultra HD - Couleur - France

Our story takes place in Lesotho, the “Kingdom in the Sky”, a small mountain kingdom enclaved by South Africa. Semonkong, to be more precise: a dusty village lost in the midst of a precipitous and timeless land. Semonkong feels like the African "Wild West", maybe because of the ubiquitous black horses tethered outside the corrugated iron shacks, or the African cowboys, who ride by draped in wool blankets.
Due to the absence of driveable roads, past Semonkong the horse supersedes the automobile: donkeys and robust Basotho ponies are the only reliable means of transport in the surrounding mountains.
It’s early October, and the village is a hive of activity: it’s the day of the biggest horse race of the year. Riding may be a necessity here, but it’s also the sport of choice, and an opportunity for the young shepherds in the area to compete against one another. Amidst the general clamour at the end of the race, we meet the winners, Kabelo and Mpho, two 16-year-olds from Basotho. Like so many young people in the area, they’ve been riding since childhood and racing for pleasure for many years. Insufficient funds and inadequate horses have prevented Kabelo and Mpho from competing outside Semonkong. However, all that may be about to change…