ABDO & SANEYA
Director: Omar Bakry
A wonderful reminder of the power of silent film, Omar Bakri’s film is shot without dialogue in dramatic black and white. Egyptian farmer Abdo and his wife Saniya are desperate for a child, which leads them on a daunting journey to New York City for infertility treatment. The treatment itself is intimidating but the couple faces an additional hurdle: they don't speak the language and are unfamiliar with the American way of life. This musical drama has all the magic and direct emotion of early cinema – laughter, tears and love surge through it - but with very modern-day heroes in Abdo and Saniya. The Jeddah audience is sure to be captivated by this innovative take on a classic genre.
THE DAMNED DON’T CRY
Director: Fyzal Boulifa
After two award-winning short films at the Directors' Fortnight under his belt, Fyzal Boulifa proved himself as a talented writer with his first feature film, Lynn + Lucy.
In his latest film “The Damned don’t cry”, we are following two strong characters, Fatima-Zahra who travels with Sélim, her eldest son. It is against their will that they move from one place of accommodation to another and from village to village, they are chased not by poverty or violence but by… scandal, which pursues Fatima-Zahra wherever she goes, like the heavy perfumes she adorns herself with.
When Selim discovers the truth about their past, Fatima-Zahra vows to make a fresh start.
In Tangier, new opportunities promise the legitimacy they each crave but not without pushing the volatile mother-son relationship to the breaking point.
There is nothing “mocking” about this portrait, Boulifa's fine writing preserves the character's dignity without hiding it's pathetic and poignant dimension nor masking the more or less latent violence of each line and situation.
“The Damned don’t cry” is actually a double portrait. The daring structure of the script does not go where expected and smoothly alternating between protagonists, passing from mother to son.
ANIMALIA
Director: Sofia Alaoui
Happily and heavily pregnant Itto (the excellent Oumaïma Barid) is looking forward to a relaxing day as her husband Amine and forbiddingly wealthy in-laws leave for a business meeting. Then come the warning phenomena: phones go down, a mysterious fog descends and both animals and people start behaving strangely. As Morocco is thrown into a state of national emergency, Itto tries to reach Amine but is stranded midway in an eerily silent village, where the remaining inhabitants speak as if in a daze. It is a journey into an ethereal unknown that will call into question everything Itto believes the world and her own privileged way of life.
SALAM
Director: Houda Benyamina
Back in 2011, Melanie Georgiades – aka Diam’s - was a huge rap star in France, having clocked up four million album sales and a host of awards, when she withdrew from the music scene overnight. It soon emerged that Diam’s, who was born in Cyprus and raised a Christian, had converted to Islam and was devoting herself to an orphanage charity, Big Up Project. She also turned her back on celebrity. This documentary about her new life is directed by Houda Benyamina, Anne Cisse and Diam’s herself. Diam’s, her mother and various friends bear witness to her history of depression, self-harm and suicide attempts, while the latter part of the film is dedicated to the transformative revelations she found in the Quran. She speaks about this transition for the first time. Few outside the Francophone world will know Diam’s music, but her story raises important questions about mental health, Islamic identity and dealing with fame.