FILM SYNOPSIS:
A restless spirit longs to return home. After the removal of Saddam, Ali, an Iraqi exile is invited to return to Baghdad. As the moment of his return draws closer, it re-ignites a series of memories that Ali had long forgotten and reawakens anxieties, which he thought that he had left behind when he fled as a child from East to West. As these feelings become more intense, Ali is forced to re-evaluate the meaning of his journey. What awaits him now in post-Saddam Iraq? Ali’s fears and doubts are only alleviated when he connects with the memory of his own childhood in the Middle East, where as a little boy he set his spirit free on the wind.
A restless spirit longs to return home. After the removal of Saddam, Ali, an Iraqi exile is invited to return to Baghdad. As the moment of his return draws closer, it re-ignites a series of memories that Ali had long forgotten and reawakens anxieties, which he thought that he had left behind when he fled as a child from East to West. As these feelings become more intense, Ali is forced to re-evaluate the meaning of his journey. What awaits him now in post-Saddam Iraq? Ali’s fears and doubts are only alleviated when he connects with the memory of his own childhood in the Middle East, where as a little boy he set his spirit free on the wind.
AWARDS AND ACHIEVEMENTS:
• Selected by O2 and JCPR for Changing Voices strand and supported by Presstop Creatives and The Mill
• Winner, Directors Award at the Hearts and Minds Film Festival (USA)
• Selected as Programmers’ Favourite Drama - DAM film festival (USA)
• Selected as award finalist for best film by the Golden Lion Film Festival Award (South Africa)
• Selected for theatrical release on 35mm prints across the UK with the 2nd largest chain, Cineworld.
• Selected for over 20 major international film festivals including Sao Paulo International, Tehran International and LA International Children’s Film Festivals.
• The official film supporting Maythem Ridha's successful selection onto Berlinale Co-production Market.
• Berlinale Talent Campus supporting entry film onto the selection for Maythem Ridha as a 2006 Talent and subsequent selection onto Wim Wender's Berlin Angel Scheme as one of 5 international filmmakers mentored by Maria Kopf of X-Films (Goodbye Lenin, Run Lola Run).Directors Award at the Hearts and Minds Film Festival (USA)
• Winner, Directors Award at the Hearts and Minds Film Festival (USA)
• Selected as Programmers’ Favourite Drama - DAM film festival (USA)
• Selected as award finalist for best film by the Golden Lion Film Festival Award (South Africa)
• Selected for theatrical release on 35mm prints across the UK with the 2nd largest chain, Cineworld.
• Selected for over 20 major international film festivals including Sao Paulo International, Tehran International and LA International Children’s Film Festivals.
• The official film supporting Maythem Ridha's successful selection onto Berlinale Co-production Market.
• Berlinale Talent Campus supporting entry film onto the selection for Maythem Ridha as a 2006 Talent and subsequent selection onto Wim Wender's Berlin Angel Scheme as one of 5 international filmmakers mentored by Maria Kopf of X-Films (Goodbye Lenin, Run Lola Run).Directors Award at the Hearts and Minds Film Festival (USA)
CREDITS:
Writer & Director: Maythem Ridha, Cinematographer: Paul Barton, Editor: Faye Jackson, Music: Niraj Chag, Production design Ahmad El-Darsh, Sound: Niraj Chag, Cast: Rami Sibai, Amr & Mo
