NO PARADISE IF YOU ARE KILLED BY A WOMAN

( 2026 )

Official Selection Out of Competition |

Iraq

Norway

Sweden

Kurdish |

110 min

About the film

Vyan, a Kurdish female sniper, has survived war by shutting down her emotions. When she learns her younger sister, believed lost during ISIS’ 2014 assault, may still be alive in Mosul, she returns to a city shaped by death and destruction. Her search becomes both a rescue mission and a confrontation with the trauma she has spent years trying to silence.

Director

Halkawt Mustafa

Halkawt Mustafa is an established Norwegian–Kurdish film director, screenwriter, and producer. His second feature film, El Clásico (2016), received international acclaim and was selected as Iraq’s official entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the Oscars. It went on to win awards at the Tribeca Film Festival and received the Public Choice Award at the Norwegian Academy Awards (Amanda). His documentary Hiding Saddam Hussein (2024) became the most-watched documentary in the history of the Arab Box Office, across the MENA region.

Producer

Halkawt Mustafa, Janne Hjeltnes, John M. Jacobsen

Production Company

Screenplay

Halkawt Mustafa

Cinematography

John Erling H. Fredriksen

Editing

Wibecke Rønseth

Sound

Mattias Eklund, Jan Kasskawo

Cast

Avan Jamal, Thorbjørn Harr, Kanar Sarchl, Kader Jalal

Contacts

International Sales: True Colours, Italy, fabio@truecolours.it

Producer

Halkawt Mustafa, Janne Hjeltnes, John M. Jacobsen

Production Company

Screenplay

Halkawt Mustafa

Cinematography

John Erling H. Fredriksen

Editing

Wibecke Rønseth

Sound

Mattias Eklund, Jan Kasskawo

Cast

Avan Jamal, Thorbjørn Harr, Kanar Sarchl, Kader Jalal

Contacts

International Sales: True Colours, Italy, fabio@truecolours.it

More About Film

Premiered at the Venice Biennale and selected as Iraq’s official submission for Best International Feature Film at the 99th Academy Awards, No Paradise If You Are Killed By a Woman follows Vyan, a Kurdish female sniper who has survived war by shutting down her emotions. When she learns her younger sister, believed lost during ISIS’ 2014 assault, may still be alive in Mosul, she returns to a city shaped by destruction. Her search becomes both a high-stakes rescue mission and a raw confrontation with deep-seated trauma.

Producer

Halkawt Mustafa, Janne Hjeltnes, John M. Jacobsen

Screenplay

Halkawt Mustafa

Cinematography

John Erling H. Fredriksen

Editing

Wibecke Rønseth

Sound

Mattias Eklund, Jan Kasskawo

Cast

Avan Jamal, Thorbjørn Harr, Kanar Sarchl, Kader Jalal

Contact

International Sales: True Colours, Italy, fabio@truecolours.it

More About Film

Premiered at the Venice Biennale and selected as Iraq’s official submission for Best International Feature Film at the 99th Academy Awards, No Paradise If You Are Killed By a Woman follows Vyan, a Kurdish female sniper who has survived war by shutting down her emotions. When she learns her younger sister, believed lost during ISIS' 2014 assault, may still be alive in Mosul, she returns to a city shaped by destruction. Her search becomes both a high-stakes rescue mission and a raw confrontation with deep-seated trauma.