MOON
A film by Kurdwin Ayub
Former martial artist Sarah leaves Austria to train three sisters from a wealthy family in the Middle East. What sounds initially like a dream job soon becomes unsettling: the young women are cut off from the outside world and under constant surveillance. Sport doesn’t seem to interest them. So why has Sarah been hired?
Nominated for the European Univesity Film Award at the European Film Awards 2024.
Status: Completed
Year: 2024
Genre: Thriller, drama
Country: Austria
Language: English, German, Arabic
Available subtitles: English, German, Spanish, Portuguese
Runtime: 92 min.
Original title: Mond
Kurdwin Ayub, born in 1990 in Iraq, is a filmmaker and artist based in Vienna. Her first fictional feature film, Sonne (2022), premiered at the 2022 Berlinale in the Encounters competition and won the Best First Feature Award. She was also nominated for European Discovery at the 35th European Film Awards. Moon (2024) is her second feature film, which World Premiere was held at the Locarno’s Concorso Internazionale, winning the Special Jury Prize.
FILMOGRAPHY
2024 Moon
2022 Sonne
CAST
Florentina Holzinger
Andria Tayeh
Celina Antwan
Nagham Abu Baker
Omar Almajali
CREW
Director: Kurdwin Ayub
Screenplay: Kurdwin Ayub
Cinematography: Klemens Hufnagl
Editing: Roland Stöttinger
Producer: Bruno Wagner, Veronika Franz
Executive producer: Ulrich Seidl
Production Company: Ulrich Seidl Filmproduktion
2024
Locarno Film Festival | Concorso Internazionale · Special Jury Prize · Europa Cinema Label Award · Ecumenical Special Mention
Sarajevo Film Festival | In Focus
Film Fest Gent | New Voices
Warsaw International Film Festival | Creme de la Creme Competition
Viennale
Filmfestival Cologne | Best of Cinema Fiction
São Paulo International Film Festival | New Directors Competition
SEMINCI | Meeting Point Competition
Films by Women Film Festival | International Competition · Best International Film
Semana del Cine Ulima | International Showcase
Transit Filmfest
Cork International Film Festival | World Tour
Scanorama | Crossing Europe
Festival Cineuropa | New Filmmakers Competition
IFFI Goa | From the Festivals
Braunschweig International Film Festival | Official Competition
Around the World in 14 films
Les Arcs Film Festival | Official Competition
Red Sea Film Festival | Red Sea Competition
Audiences will be thrilled by the way the film plays with their expectations.
Alissa Simon, Variety
A highly energetic film; a real punch in the face.
Europa Cinemas Label
A taut, politically charged thriller that offers a powerful and nuanced exploration of sisterhood and self-determination.
Jared Abbott, Journey Into Cinema