Clin d'oeil Films

Doaa el-Adl, the first woman to be awarded the esteemed Journalistic Distinction in Caricature, serves as a catalyst for transformation within the predominantly male-dominated realm of Egyptian political cartoonists. Challenging patriarchal norms, she routinely confronts censorship, harassment, and even threats to her life. In a remarkable fusion of documentary, cartoons, and animation, Egyptian director Nada Riyadh breathes life into el-Adl's most renowned works. This dynamic and fearless presentation delves into the issue of violence against women, stretching the boundaries of freedom of speech in a society often characterized by restrictions. Through her exceptional talent, el-Adl not only champions women's rights but also serves as an inspiration for societal change.

Mr. McArevey is a visionary headmaster at a Catholic primary school in one of the toughest neighborhoods of Belfast, Northern Ireland. He loves Elvis and teaches his students to connect with their feelings, while taking on the legacies of the “The Troubles.” In this exceptional portrait of a community still healing from trauma, we follow this educator extraordinaire as he uses Ancient Greek wisdom as an antidote for pessimism, violence, and historical despair.

Amany Al-Ali stands out as one of Syria's few female cartoonists, residing in her father's home in Idlib, the last city unconquered by Assad's forces. Like her remaining neighbours she's submitted to relentless Russian airstrikes and caught between advancing troops and extremist groups. Despite acclaim for her art, she faces threats, condemnation, and degradation, causing her to contemplate leaving. Ironically, her artwork has graced galleries in France and Italy but never received exposure within Syria's borders. The film captures her endeavor to organize her inaugural exhibition in Idlib. This experience compels her to confront the harsh realities of a city defined by bombings and male interference. While organizing drawing lessons for women and girls, comforting her young niece, and sharing her story with the documentary crew, Amany's outlook on the future gradually erodes.

In the heart of the Peruvian Amazon, Saor, a young androgynous Indian, carries a coffin. He is taking Valentina, his lover, back to her native village to bury her. When Valentina left this village years ago, before becoming a transgender singer in a faraway city, people here knew her as Pol. Valentina's past and death remain an enigma. Yet bit by bit, through his encounters with the people of the village, Saor begins to perceive what connected them to Pol. Sensitive to the world around him, Saor, like a Shaman, enters their memories. Saor starts to understand that, like all homosexuals persecuted by Shining Path terrorists, Pol lived in terror. In the village cemetery, between rage and bitterness, Saor attends the burial of Valentina's body. A ceremony that is both a burial and an exhumation.

This film is an African “Boyhood” that gives an insight to the political and historical situation of Burundi throughout the last 24 years through the eyes of six street children that now have become adults.

In the Philippines, women get deployed abroad to work as domestic workers or nannies. In one of the many training centers dedicated to domestic work, a group of trainees are getting ready to face both homesickness and the possible abuses lying ahead during a series of role-playing exercises.

A Swedish mining giant, Boliden, is accused of having dumped 20000 tonnes of toxic waste in a poor neighborhood in a Chilean desert town.

“Imagine this camera is your mother”, a father tells his daughter. In the 1990s, scores of families from the Republic of Moldova began a ritualised mail exchange between the mothers, who had emigrated for economic reasons, and their relatives back home. The former sent money and goods; the latter sent videotapes. These amateur recordings are the material of this film. They testify to the painful gaps the absent persons left in the lives of those who stayed behind.

Artist Victoria Lomasko explores the link between domestic and state-sponsored violence in midst of an impending crisis. Having fled Russia in 2022, she embarked on a mural project depicting events since the protest-filled winter of 2021.

In a drought-struck region in India, suffering from climate change and a high suicide rate amongst farmers, a group of resilient women farmers, who recently lost their husbands, is coming together with a local psychologist to learn counselling and help others in grief.

An intimate and vital account of love and friendship within a group of youngsters. They live in a complex, contradictory, and isolated world – the self-proclaimed state of Transnistra, where the national flag still holds the hammer and sickle. Tanya plans to move abroad, however future seems to offer frighteningly limited possibilities for her lovestruck friends.

A unique perspective on three Western countries’ attempts to grapple with anxiety, depression and psychosis.

In Brussels, the Iranian artist and film director Vida Dena meets Naseem, father of a Syrian family who fled from the war. Within the walls of their precarious home, she talks with Hala and Rima, his two eldest daughters, through drawings. The little bits of coloured paper come to life on the screen to relate the memories, dreams and destiny of this family in exile.

Laosan, a young family man, spends all his time smoking opium. For his community, lost in the heart of the Laotian jungle, opium farming is the only way to survive. But opium is also the poison that puts men to sleep and kills their desires.

Ben Felten (51), who as a teenager was diagnosed with a degenerative eye disease that left him completely blind in his mid-thirties. Despite his visual impairment, he wants to fulfill his childhood dream: top-level motorcycle racing.

The Belgian filmmaker Manu Bonmariage, known as the spiritual father of the Striptease show, now has Alzheimer's at 76. Although his memory plays tricks on him, his daughter Emmanuelle goes back in time to portray a direct cinema filmmaker who was always close to the characters he so loved to film.

Rachita Taneja, creator of SANITARY PANELS, a popular stick figure cartoon series known for its sharp socio-political commentary, has captivated young, liberal Indians. In December 2020, she faced legal prosecution for three of her cartoons, prompting a need for extreme caution not only in her art but also in her involvement in this documentary. The challenges and uncertainties they encounter during filming strengthen the bond between Rachita and the filmmaker, fostering introspection on their beliefs, privileges, and inner struggles. The wait for the legal outcome adds stress, hindering Rachita's work. She seeks guidance and support from like-minded individuals dedicated to amplifying their voices. The film explores Rachita's inner world and her creative expression, depicting a dystopian narrative where freedom of speech rapidly erodes. This documentary showcases the resilience of a young Indian woman facing persecution and censorship with humor and unflinching honesty.

Georgiana Halmac is turning 15 this winter, but she has no time for teenage dreams when her mother, who's on unemployment, moves to Torino to find work. Georgiana is left in charge of her six siblings in a social housing condo on the outskirts of Bacau, Romania. Caught between adolescence and the responsibilities of adulthood, Georgiana does the best she can, improvising with parenting advice from the television and the occasional phone call with her mother. As she handles her own issues and high-school dramas, Georgiana must also deal with admonishing neighbours who threaten to turn the whole family into social services. With incredible calm and stoicism, Georgiana amazes as she holds everything together in an ingenious and delicate balance.

A portrait of an honour killing in the rural Kurdish Southeast of Turkey. 22-year-old Dilan pays for her forbidden love for a young man in a neighbouring village with her life. She has shamed the family and therefore must die at the hands of her own brothers. And as tradition will have it, the killing must be compensated.