Silent Trees

After her mom’s tragic death on the Polish-Belarusian border, a 16-year-old Kurdish girl has to quickly grow up to take care of her 4 younger brothers. 

When her mother freezes to death in the forest on the Polish-Belarusian border, a 16-year-old Kurdish girl Runa must take care of her four younger brothers and helpless, depressed father. The family deals with trauma in a refugee camp and tries to establish a new life in Poland. Their greatest fear is being forced to return to Iraq, where Kurds face the threat of ISIS. Runa’s escape from everyday problems is a sketchbook filled with drawings that express what she feels. Gradually, her drawings come to life. This powerful documentary is a partially animated coming of age story in the times of the global refugee crisis.

DRZEWA MILCZA | Agnieszka Zwiefka | 2024 | Poland, Germany, Denmark

FESTIVALS & AWARDS (SELECTION) 

CPH:DOX, 2024 – World Premiere | Krakow Film Festival – Golden Hobby-Horse (National Competition), Special Mention (International Competition), Special Mention for the film protagonist Runa Husni | Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival | DOK.fest Munchen | Docaviv, Tel Aviv International Documentary Film Festival – Beyond the Screen Award | Giffoni Film Festival – Best Documentary

DIRECTOR’S BIO 

Agnieszka Zwiefka is an award-winning filmmaker. Her films “The Queen of Silence“ (2014) and “Scars” (2020) were screened at festivals worldwide. In her films she balances between reality and fantasy, creating hybrids that cross the border between documentary and fiction. Member of European Film Academy (EFA). Alumna of workshops Dok.Incubator, ScripTeast, Nipkow Programme and Berlinale Talents as well as Meryl Streep’s and Nicole Kidman’s The Writers Lab.