Somalian drama to be screened in Moate

A Somalian drama film will be shown in Moate tomorrow evening which tells the story of a gravedigger and his loving wife.

In 'The Gravedigger's Wife', Guled, a gravedigger, and Nasra are a happy couple, living on the outskirts of Djibouti city with their teenage son Mahad.

Nasra is ill and needs an operation to save her life, but the cost is beyond their means. Guled considering his options wants to return to his village to claim his inheritance. Nasra fears the outcome of this journey because they were banished years before as they were from different tribes, and their marriage was forbidden.

Finnish Somali writer-director Khadar Ayderus Ahmed observes the long, arduous lengths love can reach to. Ahmed's feature debut, the film was inspired by a death in his own family approximately a decade earlier.

The film premiered in the International Critics' Week program at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival. It was then screened at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival, where it was one of the winners of the Amplify Voices Award. It was also selected as the Somali entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards, the first time that Somalia had submitted a film.

The Gravedigger's Wife will be screened in Tuar Ard Arts Centre tomorrow evening (Tuesday) at 8pm. Tickets cost €5 and can be purchased on the door.

Guled, a gravedigger, and Nasra are a loving couple, living on the outskirts of Djibouti city with their teenage son Mahad.

In The Gravedigger’s Wife, Finnish Somali writer-director Khadar Ayderus Ahmed observes the long, arduous lengths love can reach to. His poetic debut is charming and wistful without ever feeling maudlin; a beautiful love letter to the power of family.