Têtes brûlées

Drama, Maja Ajmia Yde Zellama, 84’, Arabic-French-Dutch, 2025 In 2021, Maja-Ajmia Yde Zellama presented her short film Okht Elmarhoum , about a young girl whose older brother dies, after which she seeks support from his friends. The Brussels director further explores this theme in her uncompromising feature film debut Têtes brûlées , a subdued drama that had its world premiere at the Berlinale and received a special mention from the jury in the Generation 14plus competition. Twelve-year-old Eya is suddenly confronted with an immense loss after her big brother Younès unexpectedly passes away. She finds comfort in religion, rituals, and the presence of friends and family, but above all, she must lean on all her creativity and resilience to come to terms with this loss. A tender and nuanced portrait of a grieving process, which gives the term "young adult" a radically new meaning. (FFG)