10 minutes. One woman. A mother’s gift that cracks open a prison.
In suburban London, on New Years Eve in 1999, an Afghan housewife lives cut off from society by her controlling husband. In secret, with the aid of a present gifted by her mother, she sets out to reconnect with the world.
Acting
Keshtmand's eyes do the heavy lifting—devastating restraint.
Direction
Every frame a cage; the TV glow as both hope and horror.
Sound
Millennium countdown as psychological warfare—brilliant.
Director
Avesta Keshtmand
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Keshtmand shot this as her NFTS graduation film, drawing from Afghan diaspora experiences of hidden domestic violence in 'respectable' immigrant communities.
The TV's flicker was achieved with actual 1999 broadcast footage—the same BBC countdown millions watched, now weaponized as Bibi's only witness.
GB
