{{ mainName }}

{{ newsTitle }} {{ newsVisible ? '✦' : '✧'}}

    • NTC Award Ceremony
      New Talent Competition gives young filmmakers from Central, Eastern and Southern Europe the opportunity to present their outstanding debut or second film to the public. Join us on Sunday 1 December at 19h
    • Music at ENFF
      The Eastern Neighbours Film Festival welcomes special musical guests each year to enrich our program. For this 16th edition, we’re thrilled to present two talented young musicians: guitarist Antonio Peršak (CR) and violinist İdil Yunkuş (TR). Together, they will perform a traditional Balkan dance and folk song, highlighting the beauty of this music through the… Read more: Music at ENFF
    • Masterclass with Janez Burger
      This masterclass presents a unique opportunity to explore Burger's distinct storytelling style, genre use, and exploration of contemporary social issues. Join us on Saturday 30 November at 17h - Room 5
    • Panel Discussion: Exploration of individual and collective memory in cinema
      Panel Discussion: Exploration of individual and collective memory in cinema on Friday 29 November at 18h

Hooyo, Why Here?

After many years of waiting, two Somali descendants are finally Hungarians. Despite this win, questions of belonging and what is home never leave them.

Synopsis

After 12 years of waiting, Somali descendants, Anab and her daughter Naima are finally Hungarians. Despite this win, questions of belonging, what is home never leave them. Language and religion are the glue of their lives as Somalis. Will this new hope of a home give them a path towards belonging or will they find themselves drifting away on the currents of isolation and difference?

Hungary, Belgium, Portugal | 2021 | 13 min

DIRECTOR: Neema Ngelime

PRODUCTION: DocNomads

SCREENPLAY: Neema Ngelime

CINEMATOGRAPHY: Faizan Ali, Obaid Mustafa

EDITING: Jose Permar

DUTCH PREMIERE

SCREENING: Friday 25 November / 15:00h / Zaal 4 & Sunday 27 November / 11:00h / Zaal 5

Director’s statement

Anab and Naima’s journey has been a long one. Using language, one can see the lengths they went through to adapt and make the places they’ve been to home. When I was making this film, I was attracted to their resilience and journey. I wanted to manifest their strength using the mundane. I wanted to show how despite it all, Anab, the mother, has always sheltered Naima and given her the best bits, any teenager could have. I wanted to highlight their playfulness as family and love.

Director’s bio

Neema is a photographer and a filmmaker. With a master’s degree from DocNomads, a mobile documentary filmmaking school, she managed to focus on stories on the African Diaspora in Lisbon, Budapest and Brussels. Her focus primarily is domestic work, colonial legacies, spirituality as well as class struggles. She is keen on making films with the magic of the mechanical nature of the everyday with an experimental and feminist lens.

Festivals & Awards (selection)

Beldocs International Documentary Festival, 2021