Character Relationship Map: Shepherds

Characters

• Mathyas (played by Félix-Antoine Duval) — protagonist

  Mathyas is the film’s central character, a burned-out advertising executive from Montreal who leaves his previous career and moves to Provence. He seeks a radically different life as a shepherd, and t...

• Élise (played by Solène Rigot) — supporting
• Agnes Tellier (played by Véronique Ruggia Saura) — supporting
• Ahmed (played by Michel Benizri) — supporting
• Gérard Tellier (played by Bruno Raffaelli) — supporting

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Mathyas → Ahmed (Professional Shepherding Colleagues) — Ahmed represents Mathyas's direct experience of working alongside experienced pastoral laborers.

  Mathyas works alongside other herders, including Ahmed, while discovering that shepherding is more demanding than he imagined.

• Gérard Tellier → Agnes Tellier (Family Spouses) — They share responsibility for a farm pressured by dry soil, limited water, and Gérard's physical condition.

  The plot identifies Agnes as Gérard Tellier's wife while describing their struggling farm.

• Mathyas → Agnes Tellier (Professional Farm Colleagues) — Agnes is part of the farm environment in which Mathyas learns the physical and practical demands of shepherding.

  Mathyas works on the farm belonging to Gérard Tellier and his wife, while the household struggles with dry soil, scarce water, and Gérard's bad back.

• Mathyas → Gérard Tellier (Professional Employer And Apprentice) — Gérard gives Mathyas practical shepherding work, forcing the inexperienced newcomer to replace romantic expectations with discipline and responsibility.

  Mathyas finds work with Gérard Tellier on his struggling farm and learns the demanding routines of sheep farming under his direction.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Mathyas → Élise (Alliance Confidants Turned Partners) — Their relationship develops from correspondence into a shared working partnership as they accept responsibility for a flock in the Alps.

  Mathyas writes letters to Élise, who becomes his correspondent and confidante, then quits her job and joins him as a shepherd.

Story Analysis

A disillusioned city worker rebuilds his identity through difficult shepherding work and an unresolved partnership in the Alps.

Plot Progression

1. Leaving the Old Life — Mathyas abandons his advertising career in Canada and declares that he will not return. He begins pursuing shepherding despite having no experience and faces immediate skepticism.
2. Lessons on the Farm — Mathyas finds work with Gérard and Agnes Tellier and encounters the harsh realities of farm labor. Dry conditions, scarce water, physical strain, and dangerous mistakes undermine his pastoral fantasy.
3. Letters Across Distance — Mathyas writes to Élise about his new life, and she becomes his confidante. Moved by his choice, Élise quits her job and joins him in Provence.
4. The Alpine Commitment — Mathyas and Élise accept work taking a flock into the Alps. They practice moving the sheep and prepare for the isolation and responsibility of the summer season.
5. Storm and Unresolved Future — Life in the high pastures exposes the environmental and institutional pressures facing shepherds. A storm separates the pair, but they reunite safely, and Élise says she does not want to return home.