The 2019 Sundance Film Festival is set to kick off on Thursday at Park City, Utah. For roughly 35-years, the annual cinematic event has served as the ultimate platform for emerging, indie films, and this year’s lineup is no different. Featuring a record-breaking 14,259 submissions from 152 countries, the 11-day-long event will showcase projects by lesser-known directors and filmmakers from all over the globe, and includes a dynamic roster of Middle Eastern and North African projects. Read on for the three Arab-directed films you don’t want to miss.
Dunya’s Day (2019)
by Raed Alsemari
Dunya’s Day (2019)
Directed by Saudi filmmaker Raed Alsemari, this comedic short is set in Riyadh and follows a spoiled young woman named Dunya whose perfect graduation party is set back when her domestic help, fed up with her antics, take off just hours before her guests are anticipated to arrive.
Aziza (2019)
by Soudade Kaadan
Aziza (2019)
This mini film will be screened in the shorts category, and is a dynamic take on the life of Syrian refugees told through black comedy. The short film was directed by Syrian filmmaker Soudade Kaadan, who directed the award-winning The Day I Lost My Shadow.
Brotherhood (2018)
by Meryam Joobeur
Brotherhood (2019)
Tunisian-American director Meryam Joobeur’s short film tells the story of a hardened shepherd named Mohamed who becomes suspicious when his estranged eldest son returns home to rural Tunisia with a mysterious young wife in tow, causing tension between father and son.
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