Magnolia Pictures/Hulu (North America); Met Film (Worldwide)

Telluride Film Festival 2021; MoMA Doc Fortnight 2022; Special Jury Prize, Visions du Réel; New York Times Critic's Pick

Bitterbrush follows Hollyn Patterson and Colie Moline, range riders who are spending their last summer herding cattle in remote Idaho. Totally off the grid with only their dogs as companions, Hollyn and Colie brave inclement weather and perilous work conditions while pondering their futures. A portrait of friendship, life transitions, and the work of two skilled young women in the isolated and beautiful landscape of the American West, Bitterbrush is an intimate portrait of a way of life rarely seen on film. Made with the support of Catapult Film Fund, with Concordia Studio & Wavelength.

Bitterbrush - Director, Producer, Editor

"Bitterbrush, the assured debut by Emelie Mahdavian... becomes more than a portrait of against-the-elements fortitude; it poses piercing existential questions about purpose and independence, particularly for women choosing work that has long been deemed the exclusive province of men." -The Hollywood Reporter

"I found myself mesmerized by this spare, affecting, and powerfully humane work that may seem quiet and reserved, but which ends up packing a surprisingly powerful emotional punch by the end." - RogerEbert.com