Al-Sit | It's Only Customary | Indy Shorts Film Festival 2021

Expired July 26, 2021 3:45 AM

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Characters putting tradition to the test.

Films: Al-Sit; Mountain Cat; Umbilical; The Mohel; Lonely Blue Night; Devek; Play It Safe

*Note: Audience Choice voting can only be completed via Internet browser.

In a cotton-farming village in Sudan, 15-year-old Nafisa has a crush on Babiker, but her parents have arranged her marriage to Nadir, a young Sudanese businessman living abroad. Nafisa’s grandmother Al-Sit, the powerful village matriarch, has her own plans for Nafisa’s future. But can Nafisa choose for herself?

In Arabic, with English subtitles.

Programming descriptions are generated by participants and are edited for length and clarity, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Heartland Film.

Film Contact:

Suzannah Mirghani

suzannahmirghani@gmail.com

Year
2020
Runtime
20 minutes
Language
Arabic
Country
Sudan, Qatar
Rating
Suitable for All Ages
Note
Narrative Short

Director
Suzannah Mirghani
Screenwriter
Suzannah MIrghani
Producer
Suzannah Mirghani, Eiman Mirghani
Executive Producer
Julietta Mirghani, Rodney Sharkey, Maysaa Almumin
Cast
Mihad Murtada, Rabeha Mahmoud, Mohammed Magdi, Haram Basher, Alsir Mahjoub

7 films in package

Al-Sit

An arranged marriage in a cotton-farming village in Sudan. Does 15-year-old Nafisa have a choice?

Mountain Cat

A troubled teenage girl is coerced into seeing a local shaman in search of spiritual healing. Trapped by ancient beliefs that serve only to pacify her mother, she finds peace in the physical realm by unleashing her repressed, youthful spirit on the unsuspecting shaman when she realises his true identity.

Umbilical

The story of a young woman's struggle to separate from her religious and superstitious upbringing.

Closed captions available

The Mohel

After celebrating the birth of their first child, James and Lola are faced with family expectations and financial strain as they fly in a Mohel to perform their son’s Brit Milah – The circumcision ceremony.

Closed captions available

Lonely Blue Night

An awkward family reunion at a business/karaoke dinner leads a Chinese mother to realize the consequences of leaving her daughter in the care of an American homestay family. Starring Diana Lin (THE FAREWELL).

Devek

Eliya takes his sick mother Naomi to visit a psychic medium near the Dead Sea, doing everything in his power to strengthen her. However, the visit does not go as planned, causing the son and his mother to confront their future.

Play It Safe

Coaxed into playing a racial typecast in a student’s play, drama student Jonathan is faced with a decision: challenge prejudice, or play it safe.