Coachella Valley Premiere – One Time Screening
Muslim teen Ali Messalam and his family move into Berlin’s Kreuzberg area, where he is pressured by his friends to vandalize the apartment of his elderly, feisty Russian neighbor, Alexander Zamskoy. To avoid being deported, Ali’s parents send him back to Zamskoy’s place to repair the damage. This warm coming-of-age story, inspired by two real people, is a stirring feature debut by Moscow-born, German filmmaker Leo Khasin. In Arabic, German & Russian.
Writer/Director: Leo Khasin
Runtime: 94 minutes
Distributor: SiMa Film
Genre: Tragicomedy
Country: Germany
Language: German/Arabic/Russian w/English subtitles
Rating: N/R
Stars: Ryszard Ronczewski, Neil Belakhdar, Neil Malik Abdullah
AWARDS: Special Mention Giffoni 2011, Castello d’Oro & Fuori le Mura Awards at Castellinaria Bellinzona, Special Jury Award Tashkent, Audience Award Boston, Audience Favorite Washington D.C.
“…a genuine and moving coming-of-age story.” Loren King, The Boston Globe
Website: http://www.german-films.de/film-archive/browse-archive/?cHash=73734d235e9d6d69c57da1d0c47ff296&film_id=2211&typ=search&tx_moviedb_pi2[view]=detail&cHash=d3a299968cec0e43c55845d220958f53&redirect=yes
Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klIvvKWGepo
