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Papicha

Qumra Projects

Mounia Meddour / Feature Narrative / Algeria, France, Belgium, Qatar / 2019
In Arabic, French
Interests: Women, Drama, Politics, History, Social Issues, War, Youth
Rated: This film has not been rated.

Synopsis

Algeria, 1990s—Nedjma is a free-spirited and independent young student. She refuses to allow the tragic events of the Algerian Civil War keep her from experiencing a normal young woman’s life. She dreams of becoming a fashion designer, goes to university, and sneaks out at night to dance her sorrows away with her friend Wassila. Nedjma embraces life with open arms, but as the social climate becomes more conservative, she rejects the new bans set by the radicals and decides to fight for her freedom and independence by putting on a fashion show. During her personal journey of resistance, Nedjma will discover that the celebration of life is tragically often to be paid for in death.

About the Director

Mounia Meddour was born and raised in Algeria. At the age of 18, she moved to France with her family as a result of death threats they received during the Algerian Civil War. Mounia studied Journalism and Film in Paris, where she also joined the summer directing programme at La Fémis. She has directed five documentaries. Her first short film, ‘Edwige’ (2011), won the Ciné+ Award at the Saint-Jean- de-Luz Festival, the UniFrance Short Film Award, and the Grand Jury Award at the Festival du Premier Court- Métrage de Pontault-Combault. In 2012, the film was selected for the Dubai International Film Festival, the Gulf Film Festival and the Festival de Cannes. Her current project, ‘Papicha’, received development funding from the Centre national du cinema et de l’image animée (CNC) as well as the Sopadin Screenwriting Award.

Credits

Director

Mounia Meddour

Screenwriter

Mounia Meddour

Producer

Xavier Gens, Gregoire Gensollen

Production Company

The Ink Connection

Cast

Lyna Khoudri, Shirine Boutella, Hilda Amira Douaouda, Yasin Houicha, Nadia Kaci

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