Sarya has lived in Japan since she was five. She pretends to be German to her friends, which is easier than telling the truth. In reality, Sarya’s parents are Kurds who travelled from Turkey to Japan as refugees. Furthermore, she is responsible for her younger siblings while her father is at work. Despite the hardships, the future seems bright and soon, Sarya will be attending college. A tender relationship develops with her work colleague Sota, and her own feelings begin to surface. All Sarya wants is a completely normal life. However, when her father’s application for asylum is denied, she is increasingly torn apart. A truly haunting film about the balancing act of a young refugee who is searching for her own world while caught between two other ones. (Festival information, Berlinale 2022)
My Small Land
Directed by
2022
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At the film festival World Cinema Amsterdam 2022, a jury of INTERFILM's institutional member Het Filmgesprek has awarded its Prize, the World cinema Exchange Award, to "My Small Land", directed by Emma Kawawada.