ELAHA
synopsis
Elaha, a 22-year-old German-Kurdish woman, is about to get married. She is engaged to Nasim, the brother of her employer at a dry cleaner’s, and their wedding is due to take place in a few weeks’ time. When Elaha slips away to smoke with her friends at a party, the talk turns to the topic of how many young women in her community are expected to enter marriage as virgins. Some future in-laws even demand medical proof from a doctor. Elaha has already had sex and so this poses a problem: to have her hymen surgically reconstructed requires money which she does not have. Small capsules of fake blood can supposedly help to feign an intact maidenhead – but will it work? Elaha begins to question the rules: why does she have to be a virgin anyway, and for whom?
international title: | Elaha |
original title: | Elaha |
country: | Germany |
sales agent: | Pluto Film |
year: | 2023 |
genre: | fiction |
directed by: | Milena Aboyan |
film run: | 110’ |
release date: | DE 23/11/2023, FR 07/02/2024 |
screenplay: | Milena Aboyan, Constantin Hatz |
cast: | Bayan Layla, Armin Wahedi, Derya Dilber, Derya Durmaz, Cansu Leyan, Beritan Balci |
cinematography by: | Christopher Behrmann |
film editing: | Elias Ben Engelhardt |
music: | Kilian Oser |
producer: | Matthias Greving |
co-producer: | Igor Dovgal |
production: | Kinescope Film, Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg, Essence Film, SWR – Südwestrundfunk, ARTE GEIE |
distributor: | Camino Filmverleih, Wayna Pitch |