The Tale of Silyan

North Macedonia, harvest season. Farmer Nikola and his wife Jana live in harmony with their land, nature, and each other. Life is good—until their idyll is disrupted by the harsh reality of new government measures. The couple finds itself no longer able to sell their crops. When Nikola’s family leaves in search of a better life abroad, he is forced to take a job working at a landfill. There he meets Silyan, a white stork abandoned by its family because of a broken wing. As Nikola cares for the injured bird and helps it recover, an unexpected friendship forms between man and animal. A bond so strong that Nikola decides to plow his land once more and restore it to fertile ground.

In The Tale of Silyan, Nikola’s life miraculously aligns with a 17th-century Macedonian folk tale about Silyan, a farmer’s son who is cursed by his father and, as a result, transforms into a lonely stork. The result is a deeply moving, intimate documentary about the quiet power of connection, resilience, and hope, in which director Tamara Kotevska also addresses themes such as climate change and economic migration. Kotevska, known for the Oscar-nominated Honeyland, once again astonishes with The Tale of Silyan through her signature rich storytelling and enchanting, warm imagery. It is therefore no surprise that the documentary enjoyed a strong premiere in Venice, accompanied by numerous glowing reviews from the international press.