In a small town on the border between the Muslim north and the Christian south, nine brothers, sisters and cousins aged between 5 and 19 are writing their own narrative … and setting it in 2049. With a single mobile camera, little electricity and wild imaginations, THE CRITICS, as they call themselves, are escaping their lives where poverty and desperation have bred one of the most corrupt countries in the world, and creating unique sci-fi films.
Status
Production
About the Filmmakers
Director/Producer
Pietra Brettkelly
Pietra Brettkelly is a Sundance award-winning and three times Oscar-selected director and producer. Pietra is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and has the unique honour of having her films premier In Competition at five of the world’s top six film festivals. Pietra is also the inaugural New Zealand Arts Laureate in Documentary. Pietra’s films have received support from the Sundance Institute, Gucci Tribeca Fund, BritDoc, the Binger Film Lab and the New Zealand Film Commission. She is a three-times Sundance Institute alum having attended the invitation-only Creative Producing Labs twice and the Edit and Documentary Lab. Pietra’s films have screened at the Uffizi Gallery, Florence, MOMA New York, and the premier documentary strand BBC Storyville. Pietra is truly passionate about filmmaking – a self- acknowledged risk-taker motivated by stories that matter, the personal journeys that reflect bigger issues. FILMOGRAPHY 2018 YELLOW IS FORBIDDEN, world premier Tribeca Film Festival, Oscar’s Best Foreign Language and Best Documentary selection 2015 A FLICKERING TRUTH, world premier Venice Film Festival, Toronto Film Festival, Oscar’s Best Foreign Language selection 2012 MAORI BOY GENIUS, world premier Berlin Film Festival 2008 THE ART STAR AND THE SUDANESE TWINS, world premier Sundance Film Festival 2003 BEAUTY WILL SAVE THE WORLD, world premier AFI Film Festival