HAIFA STREET
directed by Mohanad Hayal
Pulling the trigger to tip the balance of power.
It’s 2006 and Baghdad is ravaged by sectarian violence. With Haifa Street as the epicenter of the conflict, masked gunmen and snipers reign with terror for reasons and political allegiances that are unclear. When Ahmed gets dropped off there by a taxi on his way to his beloved Suad’s home to ask for her hand in marriage, he gets shot by Salam, an anxious young sniper who’s living his own personal hell on a rooftop above. And so the drama begins.
DRAMA DCP/HD • 2019 • IRAQ/QATAR• 77MIN
CAST Ali Thamer, Asaad Abdelmajeed, Yumna Marwan
ORIGINAL LANGUAGES Arabic, English
PRODUCED BY Dream Productions
DIRECTOR
MOHANAD HAYAL was born in Iraq. He graduated from Baghdad University’s Faculty of Fine Arts & Cinema and then worked as assistant director on several award-winning Iraqi feature films. He has made number of short and documentary films. His last short “Happy Birthday” was selected for the 2013 Berlin International Film Festival and received the Rising Star Award at the 2013 Rhode International Film Festival. Mohanad is a seasoned journalist and is currently a freelance war videographer, documenting battles between the Iraqi Army and ISIS. He resides and works in Baghdad, conducting filmmaking workshops as one of the founders of the Iraqi Independent Film Centre. HAIFA STREET is his first feature film.
FESTIVALS
BUSAN FILM FESTIVAL 2019 - BEST FILM AWARD
GÖTEBORG FILM FESTIVAL 2019 - OFFICIAL COMPETITION