+ intro by film journalist Leila Latif

In Suzannah Mirghani’s feature debut, folklore and colonial resistance take centre stage in a Sudanese village.

Teenage Nafisa, enjoys a simple life in a Sudanese cotton-farming village, guided by her grandmother Al-Sit’s stories of resistance against British colonisers. When a young, local businessman returns with a development scheme and samples of genetically engineered cotton, Nafisa is drawn into a struggle over the village’s future. As tradition collides with modernity, she awakens to her own power. Mirghani’s feature directorial debut is a skilful blend of feminist themes and magical realism.