Director

Ameen Nayfeh

Palestine, Jordan, Italy, Sweden | 2020 |  90 min | Arabic, English, Hebrew

• Producer May Odeh, Franseco Melzi, Marco Colombo, Julia Gebauer
• Production Company Odeh Films, Metaphora, FILM I SKÅNE,
• Screenplay Ameen Nayfeh
• Cinematography Elin Kirschfink
• Editing Kamal El Mallakh
• Sound Sylvain Bellemare, Raja Dubayah, Ibrahim Zaher
• Cast Ali Suliman, Motaz Malhees, Anna Unterberger
• Contacts

  True Colours

  info@truecolours.it

About the Film

Once again, young Palestinian experiences manage to convince us that there are cinematic talents that do not stop flowing, and that there is an ongoing cinematic movement. This time, it is all evident through Ameen Nayfeh's 200 Meters, which had its international premiere at the 2020 Venice Days.

The film went through significant hardship—similar to most of the debut projects launched in the region—where financial funding is lacking, particularly in Palestine. That long wait, coupled with participating in many workshops and project competitions, earned the project the development it required, which was largely noticeable in the final result.

What earned the film its distinction was the successful casting, and the way the director controlled the actors’ movements—particularly his ability to persuade a prominent cinematic figure, Ali Suleiman, to be the cornerstone of the film, carrying the bigger part of its success.

The film tells the story of Mustafa and his wife, who come from two Palestinian villages, separated by a dividing wall. Although the distance between them is only 200 meters, their unusual living conditions pose a challenge to their marriage. This state comes to the forefront especially when their child is hospitalized, and Mustafa is prevented from crossing the security checkpoint. Here, a 200-meter journey turns into a frightening odyssey.

Nayfeh’s avoidance of directly presenting the Palestinian issue—and his adoption of the method of hinting at it through many impressive clips that give away the extent of the suffering a Palestinian individual experiences in his land—were what granted the film its power, rendering it influential, for it touches our feelings as human beings.

During its development stage, 200 Meters participated in the 1st edition of CineGouna Platform at El Gouna Film Festival, where it was awarded the Mentor Arabia for Children and Youth Empowerment prize.

Intishal Al Timimi