Sea Salt
Fall Grants 2021 - Production Stage
Leila Basma / Short Narrative / Lebanon, Czech Republic, Qatar / 15 min / Original Language: Arabic / Interests: Coming of age, Drama
Synopsis
On another hot summer day, Nayla wakes up, prays, then accidentally cuts herself while shaving her legs. While driving her to work, Nayla’s brother tells her that moving with him abroad once the summer ends, is final and that she’ll have a better future there. Blood flows underwater from Nayla’s cut on her thigh while she swims to meet the group of young guests she has befriended. They have agreed to drive to Beirut the next day for a scheduled university interview. Anthony, Nayla’s summer fling, wants her to move to Beirut and debates what Nayla wants, while she remains silent. As the night falls and Nayla’s decisions come closer, she loses touch with reality while she has her first romantic experience with Anthony. She ends up alone, in the pitch-black sea, and realizes that she can make her own decision. The next day, Nayla’s brother arrives at the resort looking for her, while Anthony wakes up with no one by his side. Nayla is nowhere to be found.
Credits
- Director
- Leila Basma
- Screenwriter
- Leila Basma
- Producer
- Cynthia Choucair, Natalia Pavlove, Stephano Khoury Mendelek
- Production Company
- Road2Films
About the Director
Leila Basma is a filmmaker and photographer from Tyre, Lebanon, currently based between Beirut and Prague. Leila holds a BA in Audiovisual Arts from IESAV at the Saint-Joseph University in Beirut and an MFA in Film Directing at FAMU in Prague. Through her work, she tries to explore the themes of society, coming-of-age, self-exploration, and identity. Her short documentary 'The Adam Basma Project' (2020) was a finalist for the 48th annual Student Academy Awards after touring various documentary film festivals like the 18th DocLisboa International Film Festival and the 24th Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival. Her photography work was exhibited in various galleries in Beirut and Prague. Leila is currently developing her next short film 'Sea Salt' and her first feature documentary 'Dance with Me' produced by Abbout Productions and Intuition Club.