Wissam Charaf’s DIRTY, DIFFICULT, DANGEROUS Opens Giornate degli Autori

release date August 03 2022

Feature film DIRTY, DIFFICULT, DANGEROUS, by Wissam Charaf, opens the 19th edition of Giornate degli Autori, which is held in parallel with the 79th edition of Venice International Film Festival. Giornate degli Autori runs from August 31 to September 10 where Director Celine Sciamma is the head of the jury. The film is set to premiere on August 31.

Founded in 2004, Giornate degli Autori is an independent film festival section held in parallel to and in association with Venice International Film Festival. It is modeled on Directors' Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival.

Roaming the streets of Beirut searching for metal objects to be recycled, Ahmed, a Syrian refugee, thought he’d find love with Mehdia, an Ethiopian domestic. But in this city, such a story seems almost impossible. Will this couple be able to find the way to freedom given that Ahmed suffers a mysterious illness that slowly turns his body into metal?

DIRTY, DIFFICULT, DANGEROUS was supported by CNC, Corsica Region, Doha Film Institute, Red Sea Fund, Italy’s Ministry of Culture, Fonds Image de la Francophonie and MEDIA. It was awarded a full promotion package from the Red Sea International Film Festival, received the Award of the French Institute in Tunisia from Carthage Pro Professional platform, the Arte prize in Busan Film Festival and the CNC award in Dubai Film Connection.

Directed by Wissam Charaf who co-wrote it with Hala Dabaji, Mariette Désert, the film stars Clara Couturet, Ziad Jallad, Rifaat Tarabay and Darina Al Joundi. It is produced by Aurora Films, Né à Beyrouth Films and Intramovies. MAD Solutions manages the film’s distribution in the Arab world, while Intramovies manages the international sales.

Wissam Charaf is a Lebanese/French director, cameraman and editor. In 1998, he began to work with the French/German network ARTE, as a news cameraman, editor and journalist. He has since covered major conflict areas ranging from Lebanon to Darfour, Afghanistan, or North Korea. He worked in programs like ARTE Info, ARTE Reportages, Metropolis and Tracks. He also worked as an assistant director with Danielle Arbid as well as on music videos with French director Henri-Jean Debon for artists such as Noir Desir, Sinead O Connor and Asian Dub Foundation. He directed 6 short fiction films: Hizz Ya Wizz, A Hero Never Dies, An Army of Ants, After (awarded in Pantin, Brive), Unforgettable Memory of a Friend (awarded in Pantin, Clermont-Ferrand, Rhode Island and pre-selected for Best short film in the Cesar 2020) and Don’t panic (Clermont-Ferrand), as well as It’s All in Lebanon, a documentary awarded in Carthage Festival. His first feature film, Heaven Sent, was selected at the ACID section of the 2016 Cannes Festival. Currently, he is working on his new short.