The Burdened

The Burdened
المرهقون
Directed byAmr Gamal
Written byAmr Gamal
Mazen Refaat
Produced byMohsen Alkhalifi
Amr Gamal
Amjad Abu Alala
CinematographyMrinal Desai
Edited byHeba Othman
Music byChen Ming-chang
Production
company
Adenium Productions
Distributed byFilms Boutiques (International)
MAD solutions (Middle East)
Release date
  • 18 February 2023 (2023-02-18) (Berlin)
Running time
91 minutes
CountriesYemen
Sudan
Saudi Arabia
LanguageArabic

The Burdened (Arabic: المرهقون, romanized: al-Murhiqūn) is a 2023 drama film based on a true story. It is the second film directed by the Yemeni filmmaker Amr Gamal who co-wrote the script with Mazen Refaat. The film premiered in the Panorama section of the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival,[1][2] winning the Audience Award (second place) and the Amnesty Award.[3]

With this participation, it became the first Yemeni film ever to be officially selected for screening at the Berlinale.[4]

It received widespread critical acclaim, and then it was screened at a number of international film festivals[5] such as the Chicago International Film Festival, Sydney International Film Festival, Palm Springs International Film Festival,[6] Shanghai International Film Festival, Seattle International Film Festival, Beijing International Film Festival,[7] Valencia International Film Festival,[8] Taipei International Film Festival,[9] and Durban International Film Festival.[10]

The film was selected for Yemen's official submission for the Best International Feature Film at the 96th Academy Awards.[11]

  1. ^ Keslassy, Elsa (15 December 2022). "Films Boutique Boards Berlinale Panorama Movie 'The Burdened' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  2. ^ Odoj, Christin. "Berlinale-Panorama: Emotionaler Ausnahmezustand in »Al Murhaqoon«". nd-aktuell.de (in German). Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  3. ^ Zaveri, Rhythm (1 March 2023). "THE BURDENED wins Amnesty International Film Award, second place Audience Award in Berlinale's Panorama Section". Asian Movie Pulse. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  4. ^ Bałaga, Marta (8 July 2022). "'We Want to Tell Our Untold Stories,' Say the Creators of Yemeni Abortion Drama 'The Burdened'". Variety. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  5. ^ Independent, Egypt (4 July 2023). "'The Burdened' wins 2 prizes at Valencia International Film Festival". Egypt Independent. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  6. ^ "The Burdened". Sydney Film Festival. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  7. ^ "The Burdened 2023". www.bjiff.com. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  8. ^ Staff Reporter (3 July 2023). "Yemeni film 'The Burdened' bags two awards at Valencia International Film Festival". BroadcastPro ME. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  9. ^ "腹荷 The Burdened - 台北電影節 Taipei Film Festival". www.taipeiff.taipei. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  10. ^ "THE BURDENED – Durban International Film Festival". Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  11. ^ "8 Arab Films Join the Race for the 96th Academy Award for Best International Feature Film". Women of Egypt. 1 October 2023. Retrieved 22 October 2023.