In the Ariège region in the French Pyrenees, the brown bear has been reintroduced in an area where shepherds traditionally graze their sheep in the summer. As the bear population grows, so does the discontent of the farmers, whose livestock is attacked with increasing regularity.
Yves is one of the old shepherds the film follows as he attempts to find a successor. His young apprentice is Lisa, who accompanies him on trips through the beautiful mountain landscape. Meanwhile, Cyril, a farmer’s son, is obsessed with his desire to see a bear—his ambition is to join the wildlife police, tasked with preventing shepherds from shooting the bears.
Enhanced by the music, The Shepherd and the Bear is an immersive experience in a magnificent natural environment, as it follows the characters with their sheep and dogs for days on end. The film also shows heated discussions and confrontations between the supporters and opponents of bears, and the complex problems of wildlife management.
