Feature Narrative Film
TOTAL BUDGET
US $804,663
CONFIRMED FINANCING
US $419,231
CONTACT
production@andolfi.fr
+33950652305
After being gone for a long time, a young woman suddenly returns to Beirut and finds herself reconnecting with the familiar yet strange life she had once left.
It’s pitch dark in the middle of the night as Jana makes her way back to her parents’ home. She has returned unexpectedly. Jana finds herself in a familiar yet strange environment after having been abroad and out of touch for a while. Vulnerable to the outside world, and haunted by the pressure to fit in, she retreats into herself until she is left with no choice but to fully immerse herself into the city she was once so eager to leave. Her insecurities about her past and future push her to reconnect with the life she had abandoned with her longtime refuge, Adam. She tries to come to terms with herself against the backdrop of Beirut, where dreams and the harsh realities of a conflicted city mix and merge.
Harvest, a live-action feature project, explores the core subjects and themes that have been the driving force of my personal and professional life. They are questions that are at once local and universal. The project provides a space to investigate identity on a multitude of levels, where the city and the built environment take center stage along with the characters.
Having failed to succeed in her independent life abroad, Jana must face her failure while revisiting all that she had once deliberately left. She was never required to have as much ambition as her brother, and in that perspective, her biggest disappointments—beyond anything else—are in herself. Throughout Jana’s migratory journey and her relationships, we draw a portrait of a city and people whose lives have been overwhelmed and torn apart by forces beyond their control. We shed light on a whole generation—if not generations— of people who have been numbed and disillusioned.
What starts off as a potential mystery turns into a drama and an escapist journey, diving deep into Jana’s psyche, and floating between different layers of reality as memories and future dreams intertwine with the present.
I discovered the cinematic universe of Ely Dagher during the Beirut Coproduction Platform in March 2017. After our discussions, I felt this was the kind of obvious encounter all producers are dreaming of.
It’s a great pleasure and opportunity for my company to produce his first feature. Ely has a rich universe, and in Harvest there is plenty of all his cinematic desires: a poetic vision of Beirut, a musical vibration, and the wish to let the audience fall into a deep emotional experience, same as his characters.
Something I particularly appreciate in Ely’s script is that for his first feature, he chooses to reinvent himself. Harvest won’t be an animated film, and the goal is set high with this story that revolves around a female character, Jana. At the same time, Ely maintains his line and vision that shone in his short film Waves ‘98, which was awarded the Palme d’Or in 2015.
After several script lab sessions (Torino Film Lab, Berlinale Talent, Ateliers d’Angers) we now feel comfortable with the script. It's a perfect mix of the specific universe that Ely wants for his film; a universe that stands in between dream and reality, past and present.
Harvest is a strong cinematographic proposal, which will find its strength and quality through the interpretation of the main character. Manal Issa, a talented young actress, will play Jana.
The film boasts an international co-production between France, Belgium and Lebanon. I’m really confident in the quality we can contribute to this first feature.
2019: You Will Die at Twenty, A Beautiful Summer, I See Red People
2018: Amal; Lindy Lou, Juror Number 2
2017: Go, Toto!, Félicité, The Competition