The Wolves Always Come at Night

Čono үүr šөnөөr irdèg

TIFF65: Greek Premiere
Blurring the boundary between fiction and documentary, this mesmerizing hybrid film traverses the boundless landscapes of Mongolia, offering a lyrical yet urgent reminder of the fragile altars and hearths on which our lives rest in the age of climate crisis. This film is the culmination of years of meticulous research by Gabrielle Brady (who captivated us a decade ago with the unforgettable Island of the Hungry Ghosts) and her close, enduring collaboration with a family of herders she encountered during her voluntary work in the early 2000s. It follows a couple with four children as they make the difficult passage from rural life to Ulaanbaatar after an unforgiving, unexpected sandstorm leaves devastation in its wake. Though deeply intertwined with the land and their animals—living a way of life that has remained untouched by centuries, the shift to the city feels inevitable as their pastoral traditions become unsustainable. Climate change is not merely a crack, but a profound fracture, a severing, and a collapse, while urban migration, a path worn down by countless locals to the brink of exhaustion, silently etches lines of anguish across their faces. As the contemplative camera captures their slow drift away from tradition, dissolving into the vastness of the land, it opens Pandora’s box, only to find hope glimmering in the darkness at the bottom.
Screening Schedule

No physical screenings scheduled.
Available at the Agora Market TIFF65.
Direction: Gabrielle Brady
Script: Davaasuren Dagvasuren, Otgonzaya Dashzeveg, Gabrielle Brady
Cinematography: Michael Latham
Editing: Katharina Fiedler
Sound: Carlos E. García
Music: Aaron Cupples
Actors: Davaasuren Dagvasuren, Otgonzaya Dashzeveg
Production: Chromosom Film, Guru Media, Over Here
Producers: Julia Niethammer, Ariunaa Tserenpil, Rita Walsh
Co-producers: Gabrielle Brady, Oyundari Khurelbaatar
Executive producer: Deanne Weir, Alexander Wadouh, Stefanie Plattner, Emma Hindley, Dan Cogan
Format: DCP
Color: Color
Production Country: Mongolia, Australia, Germany
Production Year: 2024
Duration: 96'
Contact: Cinephil

Gabrielle Brady

Gabrielle Brady makes hybrid films, developing close collaborations with the protagonists of her films. Her award-winning directorial debut, Island of the Hungry Ghosts (2018), was screened at over 80 international festivals and had theatrical releases in the US, UK, Germany, and Australia. The film won over 30 international awards, including best documentary at the Tribeca Film Festival, the Byens-Chagoll Award at Visions du Réel, the Human Rights Award at IDFA, the Grand Jury Prize at the Mumbai Film Festival, and best documentary at the Adelaide Film Festival. It was also nominated for an Independent Spirit Award. Brady studied documentary directing at the International Film and Television School (La Escuela Internacional de Cine) in Cuba.

Filmography

2013 Los pantalones rotos (short doc)
2017 The Island (short doc)
2018 Island of the Hungry Ghosts (doc)
2024 The Wolves Always Come at Night