Hawa
Qumra Projects
Najiba Noori, Rasul Noori / Feature Documentary / Iran, France, Netherlands, Afghanistan, Qatar
In Farsi, French
Interests: Documentary, Biography
Rated: This film has not been rated.
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Synopsis
Filmed over five years, this documentary is the chronicle of an Afghan family and, more particularly, of its central character, my mother, Hawa. When she was 13 years old, her parents set her up in an arranged marriage with Musa, who was 31 years older than her. Hawa had no romantic love for Musa but had six children with him. My father, Musa, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2019. Hawa decides that this moment is her last chance to start her life over as an independent woman.
Hawa had never lost her desire to learn and to experience more of life. Inspired by poems, music, and books she would pick up, she asks her children to teach her to read and write. She launches a small business of traditional textile handicrafts. Now at 53, Hawa also changes her appearance using make-up and dressing up beautifully. She brings her granddaughter Zahra to Kabul to protect her from an arranged marriage. In 2019, I picked up the camera to document my mother’s transformation, and I never stopped filming her since. However, a dramatic turn of events has created new barriers for Hawa and my family.
About the Director
Najiba Noori was born in 1995 in Iran. She began working for media organisations as a volunteer when she was just 15. Noori has participated in several workshops for photography and filmmaking in Kabul, Afghanistan. She has made reports and photo stories for various organisations and agencies, including the AFP, Huffington Post, MSF, FMIC, NRC and UN Women in Afghanistan. Noori participated in the Close-Up program 2020-2021 and at IDFA Academy 2022. She joined AFP as a video journalist in 2019. In 2021, she left her country when the Taliban took power in Afghanistan and lives in France. 'Hawa' is her first feature-length documentary.
Rasul Ali Noori was born in 1993 in Iran and graduated from journalism in Kabul. He has made several short videos for NRC, GIZ, and FMIC in Afghanistan. He was one of the cinematographers of the short film “Hoof” with the American Company Hungry Man in Bamiyan.
Credits
- Director
- Najiba Noori, Rasul Noori
- Screenwriter
- Najiba Noori
- Producer
- Christian Popp
- Production Company
- TAG Film