Kurdish film is nominated for Oscar

Sahim Omar Kalifa’s Bad Hunter is one of the 10 films shortlisted for the upcoming Oscars in the category of Best Live Action Short.

On January 14, five nominees will be announced and on February 28 the award ceremony will be held.

Bad Hunter, directed by the Belgian-Kurdish director was chosen by the members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences among 144 qualifying short films.

The short has already won several other prizes: The Jury Award for Best Short Film in Montreal, the Silver Spoke in Valladolid, the Jury Prize in Dubai and the Special Jury Award at Australia’s Flickerfest.

Bad Hunter, recorded in Kurdish with English subtitle, recounts the story of Behroz, a young hunter in Kurdistan who once witnesses a rape scene that changes his life forever.

Bad Hunter is Kalifa’s third short film. In 2013, he made Baghdad Messi, which was also shortlisted for Oscar last year. The short was another success that won approximately 50 prizes and was invited for about 150 festivals.

Land of the Heros is Kalifa’s first film that was produced in 2011 and was another success as it won about 200 awards.

Kalifa was born in 1980 in Zakho. He settled in Belgium in 2001 and pursued his education. In 2008, he received his Master’s Degree from Sint-Lukas Film School. 

LOS ANGELES, United States (K24)