Asian Pop-Up Cinema | A LETTER TO THE PRESIDENT | Afghanistan

DIRECTOR: Roya Sadat

SCREENWRITER: Aziz Dildar

STARRING: Leena Alam, Asad-Ullah Tajzai, Aziz Dildar, Mamnoon Maqsoudy

FILM SOURCE: Asian Shadows

Director Roya Sadat is scheduled to attend for the introduction before the film and the Q&A after.

SYNOPSIS: Soraya is a public official struggling to enforce the law in Afghanistan today. When she decides to save a young woman accused of adultery from the justice of a clan, things spiral for the worse to the point that she's arrested and put on death row. Asking for justice, she writes to the president, the last person who can save her. But will he listen to her plea?

A LETTER TO THE PRESIDENT was shot entirely in Afghanistan despite constant security threats and tells an important story of society there today, when the country is known to the outside world for violence and war. With a female lead, directed by a woman, and completely self-financed, it is an extraordinary example of Afghan independent cinema at the early stages of its development. This is the first film directed by a woman in Afghanistan since the fall of the Taliban. It represented Afghanistan at the Oscars in 2018.

ABOUT ASIAN POP-UP CINEMA

Presented by Sophia’s Choice, Asian Pop-Up Cinema (亞洲躍動電影展) (APUC), is a bi-annual Asian film festival in Chicago, providing a platform for specially curated Asian films in their original languages with English subtitles.

IMPORTANT TICKET INFORMATION

All tickets sold are final, non-refundable, non-reimbursement and non-exchangeable.

All the programs are subject to change.

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Rush tickets at the door are available at $20 (cash only)

No rush ticket will be available for Closing Night Film or Reception

Doors open 30 minutes prior to showtimes.

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