GREECE TURKEY / Sahim Omar Kalifa makes a feature film

After four award-winning short films, the Belgian-Kurdish director Sahim Omar Kalifa began shooting his first feature film, “Zagros” in early May.

For Kalifa it’s a long-standing project: in late 2013 he received the prize for best pitch when he presented the story of “Zagros” at the Arras International Film Festival, giving him funding to develop his project further.

Co-authored with the Belgian Jean-Claude Van Rijckeghem (who also produced the film through his company A Private View), the script is set in the Kurdish countryside and Brussels. It’s the story of a shepherd trying to find his wife who disappears with their child after being accused of adultery.

Initial filming is scheduled in Greece and Turkey, with a second stage in Brussels. The two main characters are played by the Turkish Feyyaz Duman (“My Sweet Pepper Land”) and the German-Kurdish Halima Ilter (“Between enemies”, “Kafkanistan”).

Sahim Omar Kalifa, 36, has already received hundreds of international awards for his short films, including the Jury Prize at the 2011 Berlin Film Festival for “Land of the heroes”. “Messi Baghdad” (2012) and “Bad Hunter” (2013), his last two shorts, have marked him as a director to watch.

Sources: Cineuropa, Cinevox