This enigmatic, visually arresting drama based in Sudan, on the banks of the river Nile, follows Maher, a dam worker who dedicates his nights to a mysterious personal project. As tensions in the country heighten — the president is about to be deposed — Maher channels his emotions into the creation of a great clay sculpture, which gets ever larger as his own life appears to disintegrate. With a script written by two heavyweights of French cinema, Bertrand Bonello and Geoffroy Grison, Le barrage premiered in Directors’ Fortnight at Cannes Festival in 2022.

Screening presented by Ali Cherri