Two films supported by Doha Film Institute (DFI) have made it to the 94th Academy Awards shortlist.
“Noche de Fuego” by Tatiana Huezo is shortlisted for Best International Feature – Mexico, and “Faya Dayi” by Ethiopian filmmaker Jessica Beshire has been shortlisted for Best Documentary Feature.
DFI Founder and Chair, H E Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, said she was proud to see the two DFI-granted films making to Oscars. “I wish the filmmakers all the best in the final nominations stage for the Oscars, set to be announced in a few weeks,” she added.
“Noche de Fuego” joins 15 films in the International Feature Film category. This movie was selected among films from 92 countries.
Stills from 'Faya Dayi'
“Faya Dayi” is among the 15 films shortlisted for the Documentary Feature, where 180 films were submitted.
Noche de Fuego or Prayers for the Stolen in English is a Mexican drama based on a novel written by Jennifer Clement. It is a story of Ana and her two best friends where they grow up together, affirming the bonds of their friendship and discovering what it means to be a woman in a rural town marked by violence.
Their mothers train them to flee death, to escape those who turn them into slaves or ghosts. They create their own impenetrable universe, but one day, one of the girls doesn’t make it to her hiding place in time.
Faya Dayi meanwhile is a spiritual journey through the rituals of 'khat', a mildly narcotic leaf chewed for centuries by Sufi Muslims in their religious meditations and today’s most lucrative cash crop in Ethiopia. Weaving a tapestry of intimate stories made of observations, poetry, “Faya Dayi” provides a window into the hopes and aspirations of the youth living under a repressive regime. The 2022 Academy Awards will take place at Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles on March 27, 2022.
