40 Years of Silence

Creative Documentary Hybrid in Production

40 years after her father was arrested, tortured and executed for his involvement in a plot to assassinate Saddam Hussein, Zainab returns to Iraq to confront her traumatic past, uncover the truth about the man she loved and in so doing discovers the deep scars of a grieving nation

FILM SYNOPSIS:

Baghdad, Iraq, 1979: December 4th, 27-year-old Dr. Ghazi Al-Hariri left his Baghdad home for his regular shift at Al Kadhimiya Hospital for Children. He would never return.

At the hands of Saddam Hussein’s new regime, Ghazi was arrested, tortured, and ultimately executed, branded a traitor. His disappearance left a profound void for his young family: a devastated wife, two sons, and his beloved six-year-old daughter, Zainab, who was left grappling with a lifetime of unanswered questions.

For ten long years, the family endured a demoralising existence in Iraq, living in constant fear under the watchful eye of the Ba’athist regime. Eventually, they fled to the UK, seeking a fresh start. Yet for Zainab, the shadows of her childhood agony continued to loom large.

Now, 40 years later, Zainab embarks on a pilgrimage back to her homeland, determined to unearth a childhood marred by trauma and loss. Fuelled by a complicated love for her father and an overwhelming sense of abandonment, she seeks to confront the past and uncover the truth about who Ghazi really was.

Her journey leads her to the places that shaped her formative years, each steeped in the dark legacy of an oppressive regime. Desperately searching for answers, she pieces together a portrait of Ghazi through the accounts of those who knew him—acquaintances and witnesses to the harrowing events that unfolded.

In Baghdad, Zainab meets Dr Zuhair, the regime appointed doctor who supervised her father’s torture and execution. Together they delve into a complex and emotional story and uncover Ghazi’s plot to assassinate Saddam Hussein.

Finally, Dr Zuhair accompanies Zainab to the infamous Abu Ghraib prison. Here he recounts a horrific tale of lies, brutality and death, exposing his own trauma of a past he wishes to forget. As Zainab stands on the site where Ghazi spent his last days, she learns of his defiance in the face of a corrupt jury, refusing offers of freedom in exchange for collaboration. The realisation of Ghazi’s choice to die, rather than be a puppet of the regime becomes clear to Zainab as she follows in Ghazi’s footsteps to the gallows. She begins to understand the magnitude of her father’s sacrifice.

Though the weight of the past is psychologically devastating, it is Zainab’s healing journey - a way to process her grief. Along the way, she uncovers both the cherished memories of the man she loved and the hard truths that challenge everything she thought she knew about her father, ultimately revealing to us a trauma shared by an entire nation.

AWARDS AND ACHIEVEMENTS:

Award winner - Mountain Film Continuity Grant Award winner.
Award winner - Cairo International Film Festival - Cairo Film Connection - Sounds of Egypt Award.
Award winner - Cairo International Film Festival - Cairo Film Connection - Rough Cut Lab Africa Award.
Official Selection - Sheffield Doc Fest - MeetMarket programme.
Official Selection - Connecting Stories - Scottish Documentary Institute / British Council.
Official Selection - Malmo Arab Film Festival - finalist for funding programme.
Official Selection - Medi Med - Pitching Forum.
Official Selection - Iraqi Film Institute development programme.
SVT - Swedish Television funding.
Official Selection - K-Docs - EBS Commissioning Pitch
Official Selection - MoviesThat Matter - Take on Film & Impact
Official Selection - Medi Med - Anti Pitch Forum.
Official Selection - Cairo International Film Festival - Cairo Film Connection
Official Selection - Mosaic Post-Production Lab - Royal Film Commission of Jordan

CREDITS:

Writer & Director: Maythem Ridha, Cast: Zainab Al-Hariri, Producer: Maythem Ridha, Co-Producers: Mostafa Nagy, Andreas ROCKSÉN, Associate Producer: Zainab Al-Hariri, Editor / Associate Producer: Andy Guy, Cinematographer: Samir Ljuma & Duraid Al Munajim, Sound: Fin Blackett , Graphics: Ibrahim Ahmed.

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