Carthage Film Festival 2021

The travel support fund from German film helped me see my film HOW MY GRANDMOTHER BECAME A CHAIR for the first time on a big screen in one of the most important film festivals in the Arab world: JCC Carthage, after being screened mostly online in the first year. The experience at the festival was amazing. The premiere happened at the opera cinema, the biggest screen in Tunisia. Presenting the film there in front of a huge audience was a reward to me. I was able to connect with a lot of people who saw the film and told me the stories of their inherited pieces of furniture during the Q&A or after the screenings.

This fund helped me also to meet a lot of talented filmmakers from the Arab world and Africa and watch their inspiring movies.

My film was screened 4 times at the festival. The first time was at the Opera cinema just before the feature fiction film THIS IS NOT BURIAL, IT’S RESURRECTION by Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese from Lesotho. The theatre was huge and full. The next one was at cinema Africa a historic cinema in Tunis where the film was screened along other short fiction films. I attended the 4 screenings of the film and each theatre had its special charm with the public.

In November 6, at the award ceremony, the film received the Tanit d’argent in the fiction short category. This was the most amazing news I received this year and felt like a dream. As soon as I won the award I shared the news with my producers Fabian and Nermine and also with the rest of the team.  With the current situation in Lebanon, I wasn’t expecting to be able to travel to Tunis especially because of the economy crises but thanks to this fund I was able to have this memorable experience that will be forever in my mind and heart.