An extensive investigation on the ecosystem of Europe's largest asbestos quarry in Balangero (TO) and the dense network of relations between human and land.
Not far from Turin, in the towns of Corio and Balangero and in the adjacent disused asbestos quarry—once the largest in Europe—a state of suspension prevails. Here, where the traces of mining are still visible, we also witness the—spontaneous and assisted—re-emergence of various plant and animal species. Micol Roubini draws on the memories and dreams of the local inhabitants to narrate the post-industrial development of the area and the intricate web of relationships that permeate it. Gathering a variety of documents, La montagna magica outlines the history of asbestos, a mineral considered miraculous since ancient times and a part of everyday life in the last century, now recognized as lethal, yet still in use in many countries around the world.
Artist and film director, Micol Roubini (born 1982 in Milan) works mainly with video, sound and writing. Her research investigates the relationships between man and landscape, the changing balance with which, through language, culture, an economic system or social structures, the very idea of space, geographical area or the borders of a state gradually take shape. The processes by which history and oral memories intersect, coming to shape the morphology of the territory. From 2010 to 2018, she collaborated with Lorenzo Casali in the duo Casali+Roubini. In 2019, her first feature film The way to the mountains, presented in competition at the 41st Cinema du Réel and screened at several other European festivals, won the Corso Salani Prize in 2020 at the Trieste Film festival. She is co-founder of the production company L'Altauro, and author / scriptwriter of film projects, including The young observant, by Davide Maldi presented at the 72nd Locarno Film Festival and at Doc Fortnight at Moma in New York.
