Henet Ward (Ward’s Henna Party) 2019
Morad Mostafa | Egypt 2019 | 22m | Arabic with English subtitles | 15
Synopsis
Halima, a Sundanese refugee based in Egypt, is accompanied by her young daughter, Ward, as she travels to a house situated near the Great Pyramids of Giza to provide a henna painting service for bride-to-be, Basma. Amidst the chaos of the party, Halima listens attentively to the subconscious ramblings of Basma whilst Ward wanders curiously throughout each room within the Giza home. Joyous music, belly laughter and rhythmic dancing soon transcends into shouting, violence and distress as all wedding celebrations come to a halt. First-time filmmaker Morad Mostafa has discussed his attempt to situate Henet Ward between the binaries of both documentary and drama through utilising this fictional narrative as a means to explore the social tensions that exist in Egypt today.
Henet Ward will be available to watch for free online for 10 days from 11am on Saturday 31 October.