NEZOUH nominated for 2 awards at the 2022 British Independent Film Awards

29 November 2022:

Soudade Kaadan's NEZOUH has been nominated for two British Independent Film Awards (BIFA) ahead of its Arab world premiere at the Red Sea International Film Festival (RSIFF).

The nominations go to Hala Zein for Best Lead Performance and Ahmed Yousry for Best Effects. The winners will be announced on Sunday, December 4th at a ceremony in London.

NEZOUH held its world premiere at the Orizzonti Extra Competition of the 79th edition of the Venice International Film Festival, where it nabbed the Audience Award presented by Armani Beauty – the festival's main sponsor – making it the first Arab film to receive it.

It also received the Lanterna Magica Award, which was presented by Cinecircoli Giovanili Socioculturali (CGS), ending director Soudade Kaadan's hattrick from Venice, which started when her first film, THE DAY I LOST MY SHADOW, was awarded the Lion of the Future Award at the Orizzonti Competition.

In Deadline's review, Anna Smith wrote, "NEZOUH is a charming watch that blends feminist fairytale with real-life drama." Meanwhile, Screen Daily described it as "an intense and delicate film that bravely seeks to upend expectations of what the term 'Syrian drama' generally suggests — violence and victims." Furthermore, Fabien Lemercier described it on Cineuropa’s website as "brimming with wonderful surrealist ideas."

The film takes place during the Syrian conflict, when a missile destroys the ceiling of the house of 14-year-old Zeina. As a result, she sleeps for the first time under the stars and makes friends with Amer (Nizar Alani) – the boy next door.

When the violence escalates, Hala (Kinda Alloush) – Zeina's mother – decides to leave, getting into an argument with her husband, Motaz (Samer Al-Masri), who refuses to become a refugee and tries everything to stop his family from leaving their house.

The film won a Post-Production Award at the Cairo International Film Festival's Cairo Film Connection, the Baumi Award for Script Development at the Berlinale, the ARTE Award at Cannes, and the Sorfond Award at Cinéfondation's Workshop.

It was also nominated for Best Film at the London BFI Film Festival and screened at the Tokyo International Film Festival, São Paulo International Film Festival, Mostra de València – Cinema del Mediterrani in Spain, and Busan International Film Festival.

On another note, it received support from the Torino Film Lab, Doha Film Institute, and British Film Institute.

Shot in Turkey, NEZOUH is written and directed by Soudade Kaadan. It's produced by KAF Productions (Soudade Kaadan) and Berkeley Media Group (Yu-Fai Suen) in association with Ex Nihilo (Marc Bordure).

NEZOUH stars Kinda Alloush, Samer Al-Masri, Hala Zein, Nizar Alani, and Darina Al-Joundi, and is lensed by prominent cinematographer Hélène Louvart.

MAD Solutions is managing the film's distribution in the Arab world, while mk2 films is handling the film's worldwide sales. Moreover, it is being distributed in France by Pyramide and financed through FILM4, BFI, and Stars Collective.

Born in France, Soudade Kaadan is a Syrian director who studied theater critiquing at the Higher Institute of Dramatic Arts and graduated from the Institut des Etudes Scénique, Audiovisuelles, et Cinématographiques (IESAV) at Saint Joseph University in Lebanon.

A few months ago, Netflix streamed three of her movies, including THE DAY I LOST MY SHADOW, and two of her short films – AZIZA and BESIEGED BREAD. The films, which nabbed dozens of international awards, shed light on the situation in Syria over the past decade and are currently available to subscribers worldwide.