Les Contes Modernes

In a typically mixed Baghdadi neighbourhood in 2006, a community of ordinary people try to live their everyday lives amidst the threat of unpredictable violence. At the heart of these intersecting stories we find Sara, a single mother and novelist, who regains her will to write after witnessing the forced exile of her Christian neighbour and best friend Sabiha. With the news of Saddam Hussein's sudden execution shortly before the New Year, Sara and her neighbours brace themselves for an uncertain future. Yet, like a miracle, each is able to sustain a fragile sense of hope.

A pious 20-year-old juvenile delinquent is sent to work at a sawmill in a small town; on arrival, he dresses up as a priest and accidentally takes over the local parish. The arrival of this young, charismatic preacher is an opportunity for the local community to begin the healing process after a tragedy that happened a year prior.

Eleven-year-old Wardi’s great-grandfather leaves behind a will suggesting looking to the past to find the future. Searching the house, Wardi finds out about her Palestinian homeland from family memories.

Sharaf may dream of being fabulously rich, but when he ends up in prison after killing a man in defense of his honor, he has to wake up fast. Prison mirrors the outside world, with all its systemic inequality, injustice and corruption––although, even here, Sharaf believes he can make his fortune.

Deep in a secluded forest, Marko lives in isolation under the watchful eye of his overprotective father, who is determined to keep his young son safe from the Evil Ones. Deeply lonely, and increasingly curious about the outside world, Marko yearns to uncover the secrets of life beyond the forest and begins venturing further from home. But after a cruel turn of events grants his wish sooner than he ever imagined, Marko is forced to flee and embark on a grim journey filled with unknown dangers and a glimpse into a world forever changed.

In 1983, communist Poland is shaken by the case of high school student Grzegorz Przemyk, who is beaten to death by police. The only witness of the beating becomes the number one enemy of the state.

“Respect for the vanquished”, remarks Steve “is what separates man from beast.” As a champion in Swiss-style wrestling, Steve knows a thing or two about observing codes of combat. But when his family farm faces repossession, he is forced to join hands with his ex-convict brother Joel and enter the lucrative, clandestine world of no-rules fighting.

In a town where pleasure equals being possessed by spiritual beings, Bayu aspires to be the shaman of a trance party so he can fundraise enough money to prevent an impending eviction.

The act of seeing wars is a construction. This is where it starts. Hotel Machine is a reflection on the production of representations of conflicts. Hotel Machine is the story of a hotel that remembers.

An elderly farmer and his family return home to their village after trying to make money in the city, only to find it destitute and ruled by exploitative employers and a hungry tiger. Both the greedy employers and the tiger are protected by the government, but only the death at the hands of one will provide compensation.

“The Inexact Sciences” tells a particular love story set in a unique and strange place populated by many bizarre people. Our protagonists, Rebecca and Jonah, will be put in danger by an unexpected guest, Rachel, the ghost of a little girl who disappeared many years before

When 11-year-old Juliet and her father wash up on a remote tropical island, her encounter with an incredible new species of giant salamanders leads her straight to the heart of a secret legend and the adventure of a lifetime...

On May 18, 1944, the entire Crimean Tatar people were deported from their homeland, except for the boy Ismail, who doesn’t know what happened and where his family disappeared to.

Once upon a time, there was a little girl, born on the same day as her father, Alpha. That little girl is me, Alpha Two. And this is my story. Since my mother passed away, I've been living with my father. He's a journalist. I listen to him on the radio, and we often play football together. But one day, soldiers attack my father and his radio station, forcing him to flee. Before he left, he promises he will find me again. Now, I am alone, but I am Peuhl. My mother and I are people of the water. Like her, I am a flying fish. I help my father cross the skies, deserts, and seas, guiding him on his journey to Europe. And today, I can finally meet him again.

Zek, an optimistic pink rabbit, lives in a small, isolated country called Rabbitland and dreams of a better life in a future prestigious city called New Rabbitland. But when a disastrous truth about the construction of New Rabbitland starts to unveil, Zek's illusions about her life, her country and her family all start to crumble and she must choose how and where she sees her future.

Being a shepherd in the XXIth century is deciding to belong to a world in movement, and even more to contribute to it. By inviting us to explore the unknown universe of the pastoral world, the author pushes aside conventional ideas and shows us not only men but also women who chose a profoundly current job dealing with major economic and human stakes.