This month, the Rawy film collective presents four films that are not just individual accounts, but rather fragments that weave together the full tapestry of motherhood—a story of love that endures, sacrifice that defines, and resilience that saves.

Rawy is a newly founded collective of passionate film explorers on a mission to cultivate a community around independent SWANA (Southwest Asia and North Africa) films. Rawy aims to scout raw talents and untold stories, bringing them to life on the big screen through curating pop-up events in iconic arthouse cinemas internationally and locally.

The bond between a mother and child is defined by unwavering devotion, sacrifice, and enduring resilience. A Mother's Story is an intimate collection of four short films that collectively explore the universal complexities of motherhood across diverse experiences.

The program begins gently with Mama, where a mother and daughter, separated by years, navigate the tender challenge of rediscovering their shared history. The tone then shifts dramatically with Appetite for Destruction, which captures the silent, destructive control of a mother whose anxieties push her daughters to a critical breaking point during a strained family dinner. Following this intensity, Much Cry and Little Wool offers a quiet, introspective moment, observing an elderly grandmother's daily forgetfulness during lockdown as her grandson finds a profound parallel in his own childhood memories. The program culminates with the powerful documentary, Tunisia’s Fields of Resilience, which captures Noura’s fierce, solitary struggle working grueling hours in extreme conditions, motivated solely by the need to secure vital surgery and a better future for her daughter, Reem.

Mama

Sallie Hajj, Lebanon 2024, 13', Fiction, Arabic with English subtitles

Appetite For Destruction

Zehra Eda Sert, Turkey 2025, 18', Fiction, Turkish with English subtitles 

Tunisia's Fields of Resilience

Maya Youssef, Tunisia 2024, 25', Documentary, Arabic with English subtitles

Much Cry and Little Wool

Mark Henien, Egypt 2025, 24', Documentary, Arabic with English subtitles