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Saudi Runaway

Panorama Dokumente 2020
© Christian Frei Filmproductions
Using her smartphone camera, a young woman invites us into her world and her life behind closed doors, a veil and the façade of a respectable family. Muna’s life is determined by her father and a much-mentioned future husband. Realising that her passport is about to expire and that neither of these men will agree to an extension, she plots her escape from Saudi Arabia.
Moments of pure joie de vivre – such as Muna’s unbounded excitement at the spectacle of a rare cloudburst – are in stark contrast to her oppressive situation. Disregarding the risks involved, she secretly records the ups and downs of her everyday life: the murky view of the world she sees through her veil; the uninhibitedness of women among themselves; the creeping dread of the inexorably approaching forced wedding; as well as moments of communality during Muslim holidays.
Susanne Regina Meures’ second feature-length film relies exclusively on the images captured by her protagonist. By means of attentive editing and a few text inserts, this documentary tells a personal story that reveals the asymmetrical power relationship between the genders and how this state systematically upholds the mechanisms of patriarchal oppression.
by Susanne Regina Meures Switzerland 2020 Arabic 88’ Colour Documentary form

Crew

Written and Directed by Susanne Regina Meures
Cinematography Muna
Editing Christian Frei
Music Karim Sebastian Elias
Sound Jacques Kieffer
Producer Christian Frei
Executive Producers Matthias Erny, Philip Delaquis
Co-Producers Susanne Regina Meures, Urs Augstburger
Co-Production Kiosk International Zürich
Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen SRF Basel

World sales

Rise and Shine

http://www.riseandshine-berlin.de http://www.riseandshine-berlin.de

Produced by

Christian Frei Filmproductions GmbH

Photos

Susanne Regina Meures

© Maurice Haas

Born in 1977 in Mönchengladbach, Germany, she studied photography and art history in London and film at Zurich University of the Arts. Her first feature-length documentary, Raving Iran, screened in the 2017 Perspektive Deutsches Kino as well as at 130 other international festivals; the film won a number of awards and had a successful cinema release.

Filmography

2013 Julie will mehr (Julie Wants More); short documentary · Julie will mehr (Julie Wants More); short documentary 2016 Raving Iran; documentary · Raving Iran; documentary, Perspektive Deutsches Kino 2020 Saudi Runaway; documentary, Panorama

Bio- & filmography as of Berlinale 2020