Aïcha lives on a farm in northern Tunisia with her husband and three sons. The two older ones, Mehdi and Amine, leave the family to fight jihad in the name of ISIS. Aïcha wants to protect her youngest offspring from the cruel truth, but her efforts are complicated by Mehdi’s return – alongside a mysterious woman in a niqab. Debut director Meryam Joobeur introduces magical-realist elements into an otherwise raw story, an unsettling tale of family, cruelty, violence, and forgiveness. The film, shown in the main competition at this year’s Berlinale, isn’t afraid to get truly close to its protagonists, and thanks to its evocative cinematography you will be sure to remember their faces long after the credits have rolled.
Marek Čermák
117 min / Color, DCP
Director Meryam Joobeur
/ Screenplay Meryam Joobeur
/ Dir. of Photography Vincent Gonneville
/ Music Peter Venne
/ Sound Aymen Labidi, Gwennolé Le Borgne, Elias Boughedir, Niels Barletta
/ Editor Maxime Mathis, Meryam Joobeur
/ Art Director Mohamed Ilyes Dargouth
/ Producer Nadim Cheikhrouha, Sarra Ben Hassen, Annick Blanc, Maria Gracia Turgeon, Meryam Joobeur
/ Production Tanit Films, Midi La Nuit, Instinct Bleu
/ Coproduction 1888 Films, Godolphin Films, Eye Eye Pictures
/ Cast Salha Nasraoui, Mohamed Hassine Grayaa, Malek Mechergui, Adam Bessa, Dea Liane, Rayen Mechergui, Chaker Mechergui
/ Sales LUXBOX
Meryam Joobeur. Selected filmography: Gods, Weeds and Revolutions (2012, short), Born in the Maelstrom (2017, short), Brotherhood (2018, short), Who Do I Belong To (Mé el Aïn, 2024).
LUXBOX
6 rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud, 75011, Paris
France
Phone: +33 658 822 520
E-mail: [email protected]
Meryam Joobeur
Film Director
Maria Gracia Turgeon
Producer
Annick Blanc
Producer
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