Hamada

The Sahrawi are a forgotten people. Ever since Morocco annexed the Western Sahara in 1975 and drove the Sahrawi from their homeland, they have fought a fruitless battle for independence that has garnered almost no international attention. At the Algerian border, deep in the rocky desert, refugee camps have risen up that are cut off from their surroundings by minefields and Morocco’s defensive wall, which stretches for thousands of kilometers.

People have been living in these settlements for decades now. It’s a dreary and tough existence, but the three friends Sidahmed, Zaara and Taher won’t be discouraged. With understated humor, director Eloy Domínguez Serén shows how these twentysomethings manage to keep on chasing their dreams. Sidahmed wants to go to Spain, while the cheerful Zaara, who's not one to be bossed around, is determined to buy a car. First she has to find a job, not to mention learn to drive.

In addition to capturing the monotony, the delightful camerawork in this colorful, vital portrait of stagnated lives reveals the more pleasant, softer side of this secluded world.