Synopsis
Set in early 1990s Iraq, when the country was crippled by poverty and UN international sanctions, 9-year old Lamia lives in poverty with her ailing grandmother in the Mesopotamian marshlands. When Lamia’s name is picked out in the class draw, she is faced with the ‘honour’ - and the exceptionally daunting challenge - of baking a cake for her school’s mandatory celebration of Saddam Hussein’s birthday. Her grandmother cannot afford the ingredients and so, together with Lamia’s young friend and her pet rooster, they set off for the city to try and somehow source the ingredients.
The film is not based on one specific individual's true story, but it is deeply grounded in real history. Under Saddam Hussein's regime, schools and institutions were legally required to host lavish celebrations for the dictator's birthday. As a result of the UN-backed sanctions, food and basic goods were incredibly scarce, with eggs, flour and sugar regarded as luxury items. The demand for a pristine birthday cake was thus a perilous task for impoverished families, given that a failure to deliver could result in severe punishments for the child and their family. Indeed, the writer and director, Hassan Hadi, drew upon memories of his own fearful childhood in Iraq, including the memory of a friend and classmate who failed to produce a cake and, as a result, was expelled and forced to join Saddam’s child army.
Part fairy tale and part moral fable, the film undergoes several tonal shifts, skilfully navigating between the comic, the charming and the tragic, providing a child’s eye view of a brutal dictatorship and the effect that the crippling UN sanctions has on its people.
The film premiered in 2025 at Cannes in the Directors’ Fortnight, winning both the Audience Award and the Caméra d’Or for the best first feature. It went on to make history as the first ever Iraqi film to be shortlisted for the Best International Feature Oscar.
Additional Info
Non-Member Tickets £5
Around 65 non-member tickets are available to purchase for individual screenings in Season 63. Non-member tickets are £5 (full-time students £3) and can be purchased in advance from The Exchange’s Box Office: online at http://exchangetwickenham.co.uk/events, by telephone 020 8240 2399 or in person. Non-member tickets sold out for the vast majority of screenings last season, so early pre-booking via The Exchange is strongly recommended to avoid disappointment.
For further information on RFS and the programme of films, see http://www.richmondfilmsoc.org.uk.
Location
Richmond Film Society, The Exchange, 75 London Road, Twickenham, TW1 1BE
Booking Link
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Tickets
