The relationship between a remarkably perceptive young boy and his wise, bedridden grandfather overflows with humour, warmth and love. As the old man senses that he has reached the end of his days, he takes his grandson into the forest in search of chanterelles, an expedition that offers the boy more than he realizes at first as he learns the secrets to finding and cooking the delicate mushrooms. With a light touch and an extraordinary sense for the fleeting moments in life, the film offers a moving reflection on being young and being old, and living and dying.
Nearing death, a grandfather bequeaths a profound secret to his grandson
Directors: Åsa Blanck, Johan Palmgren
Producer: Åsa Blanck
6 December 2013
videoLife stages
Love evolves and death isn’t worth your worry – life lessons from an 88-year-old
7 minutes
videoFamily life
Shaggy bear story: a German filmmaker grapples with his dear grandfather’s Nazi past
8 minutes
videoChildhood and adolescence
‘Why do we need colours?’ A blind boy and a sighted girl experience a meadow
7 minutes
videoDeath
A boy grapples with death while waiting to take over his sick grandmother’s room
10 minutes
videoMeaning and the good life
A 70-year-old Danish mariner and yogi shares his plans for dying well
7 minutes
videoValues and beliefs
A Zen Buddhist priest voices the deep matters he usually ponders in silence
5 minutes
videoAgeing and death
When his elderly parents make a suicide pact, Doron struggles to accept their choice
19 minutes
videoMeaning and the good life
What a ‘good death’ can look like, in the quiet company of a compassionate stranger
18 minutes
videoChildhood and adolescence
Children at play provide a rare glimpse into the imagination, ours and theirs
15 minutes