Projects in genres: Woman Director

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Zahida is the first female taxi driver in Pakistan and a local legend. A widower at 56, she is continually juggling her home life with behind the wheel. A fascinating insight into the trials faced by a determined woman carving her own path within a patriarchal society.

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Haunted by the memories of his childhood in Baghdad, Abdullah has dementia and struggles to communicate with his daughter. As his mind slips and slides between his past and present, his daughter Leilah searches for one last moment of connection with her father before she also fades from his memory.

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The rituals of Persian warrior training are seen in combination with the recitations of a young girl coming to terms with her impending womanhood. Official Selection International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) 2018 - International premiere

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Drawn exclusively from the BFI National Archive, 'Around India' features some of the earliest surviving film from India as well as gorgeous travelogues, intimate home movies and newsreels from British, French and Indian filmmakers. Director Sandhya Suri weaves together archive footage to create an emotionally resonant story about life across India from 1899 to 1947. Taking in Maharajas and Viceroys, fakirs and farmhands and personalities such as Sabu and Gandhi, the film explores not only the people and places of over 70 years ago, but asks us to engage with broader themes of a shared history, shifting perspectives in the lead up to Indian independence and the ghosts of the past. The film also features a superb new score that fuses western and Indian music from composer and sarod player Soumik Datta.

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When a tormented naval officer returns home to Liverpool, the city becomes a landscape for atonement as he is forced to confront his past.

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In 20th-century France at a boarding house in Paris, a young girl's life is changed by the arrival of a mysterious man, whom she discovers is a wire walker. Based on the much-loved, Caldecott-Medal winning book 'Mirette on the High Wire’. Official Selection Tribeca Film Festival 2018 - World premiere

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A young woman visits home and just as she's about to ring the bell, the aroma of food evokes a powerful memory which takes her back to her childhood and it also reminds her of her fabricated past. Official Selection Rotterdam International Film Festival 2018 - World premiere

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Upon being drawn to life, Crescent the Cat devours a large jar of multicoloured candy!

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A gothic fairytale following three generations of women coming together in the aftermath of a divorce. When Alice’s mother, Grace, tells her that her father has become a “beast,” 7-year old Alice begins to question who or what she really is.

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Hedi Jouini is the most popular musical star in Tunisian history, known as the “Frank Sinatra of Tunisia”. His songs continue to inspire revolutionaries and conservatives alike, striking at the heart of the post-colonial social and political upheaval of Tunisia and its continuing search for identity in the wake of the Arab Spring. But why did he keep his fame hidden from his family? What dark secrets did he keep from the nation that worshipped him? ‘The Man Behind the Microphone’ reveals the incredible story behind a man and his music, and o ers fascinating insight into Tunisia’s cultural evolution. The film builds a profound portrait of the godfather of Tunisian music – father to a nation yet not to his family. Official Selection IDFA 2017 - European premiere

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Amongst the iconic landmarks of London, a man overwhelmed by despair and burdened by life, stands on Waterloo Bridge contemplating finding peace at the bottom of the Thames. A concerned stranger stops and urges him to reconsider. Will her actions act as a catalyst in his life or death decision?

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A woman in a small town in 1959 England decides, against polite but ruthless local opposition, to open a bookshop. A decision that becomes a political minefield. By exposing the locals to cutting-edge literature of the day such as Nabokov’s 'Lolita' and Ray Bradbury’s 'Fahrenheit 451', she sows the seeds of an awakening in the conservative town. Official Selection Berlinale 2018 - Berlinale Special Gala