Somalia makes history with 'The Gravedigger's Wife' for the first Oscar submission.
Five Arab countries have so far submitted their candidates for Best International Feature Film at the Oscars 2022, including an entry from Somalia for the first time.
The category looks at films that are predominantly non-English in dialogue, including animation and documentary films. A shortlist of 15 finalists will be announced on December 21, with five nominees announced on February 8, 2022.
The films are Casablanca Beats by Moroccan filmmaker Nabil Ayouch, Palestinian director Ameer Fakher Eldin’s The Stranger, Abdelhamid Bouchnak-directed Golden Butterfly, which is Tunisia’s entry, Algerian director Djafar Gacem’s Heliopolis and The Gravedigger’s Wife by Somali-Finnish writer-director Khadar Ayderus.
The Gravedigger’s Wife, tells the story of a gravedigger trying to find ways to pay for his sick wife’s treatment.
Casablanca Beats, which had its world premiere in July, is based on the director’s own childhood experience and was the first fully Moroccan film to compete for the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival.
