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Documentary, 92 min

from abdul to leila

A film by leïla albayaty

2024
Germany, Belgium, Qatar, Saudi Arabia

Crew

Leila Albayaty

Synopsis

After an accident that caused memory loss and several years of exile, a young French-Iraqi woman reconnects with her family to understand who she is. Gathered in the family home in the south of France, Leila confronts her father, Abdul, with his own past, the Iraq war, and decides to learn Arabic to set to music the poems he wrote for her. Language and music gradually lead her to long-repressed memories, guiding her towards the discovery of her origins and the Arab world. This is the odyssey of a woman who sings her story to reinvent herself, driven by an irrepressible desire to live.

Thessaloniki Documentary Film Festival, Greece
El Gouna Film Festival, Egypt
Cinemania, Francophone Film Festival, Canada
Tetouan International Mediterranean Film Festival, Morocco
Brussels International Film Festival, Belgium
Edinburgh Documentary Film Festival, Scotland
Annual Aarhus Film Festival, Denmark
Arab Film Festival of Rotterdam, Netherlands
Zawya Cairo Week, Egypt
Beyond Borders Film Festival, Greece
Fidba Documentary Film Festival, Argentina
Quinzaine of the Francophone Films, France
Cinealma Mediterranean Film Festival, France
Carthage Film Festival, Tunisia
Bozar Film Festival, Belgium
Cinema Sans Frontières, France
Best Asian Film - Netpac Awards (Iraq) at the El Gouna Film Festival
Grand Jury Prize at the Mediterranean Film Festival of Tetouan
Best Documentary at the Annual Aarhus Film Festival
Best Documentary at the Arab Film Festival of Rotterdam
Jury Prize of the Credit Agricole at Cinealma
Production Company(ies):
Volte Films, Dérives

Stills