Jordan's independent selection committee has chosen the film "Drowning" (Ghraq), written and directed by Zain Duraie, to represent Jordan in the official submissions for the Best International Feature Film category at the 99th Academy Awards, making it the tenth film the Kingdom has submitted for this category.
اضافة اعلان
The selection comes after the film's presence at Arab and international festivals and its winning of several awards, though its eligibility and acceptance remain subject to the decision of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, before the shortlist and final nominations are announced.
"Drowning" enters the world of Nadia, a wife and mother of three, who lives behind a facade of seemingly stable life, while facing a crisis in her marriage and a growing feeling of losing herself. She finds her closest emotional bond in her relationship with her eldest son, Basel, a top student and introverted teenager in his final year of school.
The family's life shifts after Basel has an episode at school that leads to his suspension from studies. Amid attempts at containment and fear of acknowledging the scale of the crisis, Nadia clings to her conviction that her son needs her support and guidance, while his undiagnosed psychological condition deteriorates, and things begin slipping out of her control.
The film opens its story with a scene of Basel swimming in a small pool, while Nadia stands at the edge watching him. Body movement, silence, and the distances between the characters play a role in expressing the difficulty of communication between mother and son. Through their relationship, the work addresses the fragmentation of family bonds and attempts to restore them, and what caregiving carries alongside it, of love, anxiety, and an inability to understand another's suffering.
Clara Khoury plays the role of Nadia, Mohammad Nizar portrays Basel, while Wissam Tabile takes part as Jalal. The film was shot entirely in Amman with the participation of 50 Jordanian crew members, and was produced by Alaa Al-Assaad and Hind Anabtawi of "Tabe' 360" company.
The film received support from the Jordan Film Fund, the Doha Film Institute, the Red Sea Fund, and the Arab Fund for Arts and Culture (AFAC).
"Drowning" represents Zain Duraie's first feature-length narrative work, having previously had her short film "Salam" screened at the Venice International Film Festival, where it won the Best Arab Short Film award at the El Gouna Film Festival.
"Drowning's" global journey began in the "Discovery" section of the 50th Toronto International Film Festival, and it was the only Arab film nominated for the "Sutherland Award" at the BFI London Film Festival.
It also won the Ecumenical Jury Prize at the Mannheim-Heidelberg Film Festival, and the Bronze Tanit at the Carthage Film Festival.
Its Middle East and North Africa premiere was held at the Red Sea International Film Festival, and it took part in the "International Panorama" section at the Shanghai Film Festival, alongside the Sarajevo Film Festival and more than 30 other festivals.
Selection of the film to represent Jordan was carried out by an independent committee comprising five professionals and experts from the audiovisual sector, while the Royal Film Commission Jordan managed and coordinated the submission process, without taking part in the artistic selection.
Resource: Al-Ghad.
