Asino consists of eight novellas, approximately 20 minutes each. Shot in Italy, Vasiliev's film teeters between reality and allegory, asking viewers to reflect on what they see. The chapter titles (Bacchus, Medea, etc.) and quotes from Apuleius, Pirandello and Aeschylus provide context. The third novella documents the donkey worship in Alba, Italy, where donkey races are held during the Palio. In Asino, donkeys are simultaneously domesticated animals, humans and divine, mythological creatures, so in a sense the film summarises the beast’s role in Western culture.