Shorts

After a long time apart, local no-hoper John must take care of reserved schoolboy Jack over a weekend in an insular working-class outpost of Western Sydney. However, Jack’s attempt to re-establish their relationship is threatened as John’s self-destructive nature emerges. Mate examines themes of masculinity, maturity and the challenges of growth within a changing social landscape. What did you seek to explore through the relationship between John and Jack? For my co-writer Daniel Corboy (…)

Boushra, one of the Syrian potato-picking girls in Lebanon, returns from a long day of work in the field only to learn that today her childhood will come to an end. Is the character of Boushra based on someone you know? The character of Boushra, if we speak about characterization, is not based on anyone. The destiny of Boushra, the idea of being forced to marry someone at 14 years old is based on my grandmother’s story. My grandmother was forced to get married when she was 14 – she was (…)

After his father’s death, Yusuf goes to his village, which he has not been to for years, and learns that a geothermal company wants to buy his father’s agricultural lands and drill a well. He wants to solve problems without disrespecting his father’s memory, but things don’t go as he hoped. Where did the idea for the movie come from? I have been living in Istanbul for many years and I have been dealing with cinema and television works. My family lives in Manisa and looks after our (…)

One evening a prison director announces to a convict being executed next day. As by a miracle later at night the cell door opens. Being exhausted by endless interrogations the convict drags on through dark prison corridors. On his odyssey to gain freedom he is tossed back and forth by various mental states: his fear of being discovered, his hope for salvation and moments of sheer madness. How did you come across La Torture par l’espérance, the particularly cruel short story by Auguste de (…)

Nathan is thirteen years old boy. Driven by his new friend Malik, he prepares himself for a strange ritual to become a member of a teens gang. Who (or what) inspired you for Nathan’s character? When creating Nathan’s character, I was inspired by a childhood friend. A turbulent and reckless young boy who had the annoying habit of pushing me to my limits. A young man, who in intimate moments could be very sensitive and sweet. It is these two faces, tender and violent at the same time, (…)

For Christmas, three garbage collectors, Elijah, Nino and Belz, are surprised to be invited to dinner at the home of the Prime Minister and the First Lady. They go there, enthusiastic and candid, without suspecting that on the menu is a painful series of disillusionments and manipulations. Au plaisir les ordures is a dramatic comedy with the feel of a revolutionary tale, which attempts to explore the encounter between the well-spoken contempt of the political class and a sudden awareness of (…)

Every weekend, Anne and Jeff go to the Mettet motorcycle circuit. A racing driver, Jeff is training. Anne takes his lap times. Occasionally, at the Au Circuit café, she negotiates bitterly on the phone the loan of the motorbike. Anne’s gaze then meets that of Jacques, a client who, like his sidekick René is part of the furniture. They never exchange a word. One day, Jacques sets off. He joins her. Why did you decide to shoot in black in white? The idea for this film came to me during a (…)

It’s October, the end of the rainy season in Fouta, an isolated region in the north of Senegal. Astel (13) accompanies her father every day in the bush. Together, they look after their herd of cows. But one day, in the middle of the desert, the meeting between the young girl and a shepherd disrupts the peaceful daily life between Astel and her father. Where did inspiration for Astel come from? From my personal experience, from the strong bond I had with my father when I was young and my (…)

When Europe’s Moria refugee camp burns to the ground, two friends from Aleppo choose to stay in the ruins and survive by scavenging metal in the apocalyptic world left by the fire. But they are in a race against the clock as the metal is taken by Roma people filling up their cars and Greek authorities filling up trucks with excavators, while the police is on the searching for fugitive refugees. What made you decide to make a documentary about the refugees from the camp of Moria? Moria (…)

After a bus accident in the middle of nowhere, Lupa decides to tag along with another passenger, Alban, who is determined to reach the nearest village on foot. Crossing through fields and rivers, they slowly go off-course in a strange forest. Where did you get the idea for this rather supernatural adventure? This project has been in development for a very long time. It arose from life experience and my feminist and ecological convictions. A few years ago, I found myself stuck in a train (…)