Film Countries Archives: Somalia

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An older man, in a home lit by sunlight, with a young child haning over his shoulders.

The Village Next to Paradise

  Mo Harawe

  Austria, France, Germany, Somalia     133 minutes

Synopsis

Like a dream, Mo Harawe’s debut full-length The Village Next to Paradise — the first Somali feature ever selected for Cannes — lingers in the viewer’s memory after it ends, shifting and changing shape with the events of the day. The narrative is simple yet profound: the film follows a newly formed family, each with their own modest dreams for the future. The elder Mamargade seeks employment, his sister Araweelo aspires to own a small shop, and the youngest, Cigaal, imagines a field made of sweets and hopes to attend school.

The volatile backdrop of contemporary Somalia lends a simmering tension to Harawe’s muted storytelling, as drone strikes and political violence threaten to permanently disrupt the characters’ humble way of life. But even in places where death feels close, life must go on — a poignant observation Harawe handles with uncommon grace and artistry.

 Somali with subtitles

Screenings & Events

Screening

Wed, Oct 23 @ 7:45pm CDT

at AMC NEWCITY 14, screen 01

Screening

Thu, Oct 24 @ 2:00pm CDT

at AMC NEWCITY 14, screen 06

Media

Film Credits

  •   Sabine Moser, Oliver Neumann
  •   Mo Harawe
  •   Joana Scrinzi
  •   Mostafa El Kashef
  •   Ahmed Ali Farah, Anab Ahmed Ibrahim, Ahmed Mohamud Saleban
  •   Jean Christophe Reymond, Nicole Gerhards, Mo Harawe, Nuh Musse Berjeeb, Abdimalik Yusuf, Ahmed Farah, Osman Hassan Hussein
  •   FreibeuterFilm, Kazak Productions, NiKo Film, Maanmaal ACC

Sponsors

Black Perspectives Program Sponsor

Logo: AllState

New Directors Program Patron

Robert and Penelope Steiner Family Foundation