MAD Solutions to feature 6 films at Amman Int’l Film Festival

MAD Solutions will be featuring six features from its distribution slate at the upcoming edition of the Amman International Film Festival - Awal Film, which is set to take place from July 3rd to July 11th.

The MAD lineup includes Amjad Al-Rasheed’s INSHALLAH A BOY, Mohamed Ben Attia's BEHIND THE MOUNTAINS, and Amr Gamal's THE BURDENED — all of which will be screened as part of the festival’s Arab Competition — along with Faouzi Bensaïdi’s DÉSERTS, Karim Bensalah's SIX FEET OVER, and Marya Zarif and André Kadi’s DOUNIA AND THE PRINCESS OF ALEPPO, which will be featured in the festival’s Rendez-Vous Franco Arabe.

Learn more about MAD Solutions’ entries at Amman:

Coming up first is Amjad Al-Rasheed's INSHALLAH A BOY, which follows the recently widowed Nawal, who has to save her daughter and home following her husband’s death in a society where having a son is a game changer.

Directed by Al-Rasheed and co-written alongside Delphine Agut and Rula Nasser, INSHALLAH A BOY — Jordan’s official submission for Best Foreign Film at the 96th Academy Awards — stars Mouna Hawa, Haitham Omari, Salwa Nakkara.

Next up is Mohamed Ben Attia’s BEHIND THE MOUNTAINS, which follows Rafeek, who, after spending four years in jail, decides to take his only son behind the mountains to show him an incredible find.

Third in the line is Amr Gamal's THE BURDENED — which was the first Yemeni film to play in the official selection of the Berlinale — is based on a true story set in Aden, Yemen. The film follows Ahmed, Isra'a, and their three children after they both lose their jobs as a result of an economic crisis.

After the mother discovers she is carrying a fourth child, the beleaguered parents try to get an abortion despite their community's conservative stance, forcing the family to make tough decisions to survive.

Next is Faouzi Bensaidi's DÉSERTS, which follows gawky associates Mehdi and Hamid, who work for a collection agency in Casablanca and roam remote villages in the great South of Morocco to collect money from overextended people.

MAD’s penultimate entry in Amman is Karim Bensalah's SIX FEET OVER, which follows Sofiane — the son of a former Algerian embassy clerk — who has traveled around a lot.

Now a student in Lyon, his visa has been revoked and he lives under the threat of expulsion. Hoping to legalize his status, he agrees to work for a Muslim funeral home.

Amidst parties, encounters, and his job, Sofiane will start an initiatory journey that will lead him to find himself, shape his own identity, and gradually move toward adulthood.

Last but not least is Marya Zarif and André Kadi’s DOUNIA AND THE PRINCESS OF ALEPPO, which follows Mica, a child from a shantytown who finds himself propelled as a handyman in a Casablanca tennis club frequented by the Moroccan nomenklatura. Ready to do anything to change his destiny, he is noticed by Sophia — an ex-tennis champion who takes him under her wing.