Elite Zexer makes her auspicious feature debut with this impressive and absorbing drama, driven by two strong female characters, set in a Bedouin village in Southern Israel. Jalila's (Ruba Blal-Asfour) husband is about to welcome a second wife into their household. Uneasy about the arrangement but respecting tradition, she keeps her emotions at bay - until she finds out her daughter Layla (Lamis Ammar) has been secretly seeing a boy at school, making her an easy target to vent her boiling frustration. Thus, mother and daughter are pitted against one another as they struggle to reconcile patriarchal pressures and family duty with their desire for autonomy and freedom.

"A solid, sensitive feature debut... As a director, Ms. Zexer has a fine eye for the texture of daily life, which she fills in with resonant physical details and sweeping, scene-setting views." Manohla Dargis, The New York Times

Winner: Six Israeli Academy Awards, including Best Film, Best Director, Best Supporting Actress; World Cinema Grand Jury Prize, Sundance

Elite Zexer – Director (January 7 & 8 only)