Screening of film following plight of gay Chechen man

The Cultural Workshop Agion Omologiton in collaboration with the French Institute in Nicosia are organising a screening on Tuesday, July 18 of the film Silent Voice. Anaïs Llobet, the film’s co-screenwriter, will also be present at the event to introduce the film, talk to the audience and have a Q&A after the screening.

The event in the old Nicosia neighbourhood will begin at 8pm and is free, as it is part of the programme of film activities of the Cultural Workshop, which is supported by the Deputy Ministry of Culture.

Directed by Reka Valerik, the film is of Belgian and French production and follows the journey of a young MMA fighter who flees Chechnya when his brother discovers his homosexuality and promises to kill him, under the persecution of Kadyrov’s regime.

In Brussels, facing the shock of exile, Khavaj is struck mute. The only link that he keeps with Chechnya are the vocal messages that his mother sends him. The film traces Khavaj’s first months in Belgium. Forced to live in total anonymity to escape the Chechen diaspora, as he tries to build a new identity.

Silent Voice

Film screening and Q&A with co-screenwriter. July 18. Cultural Workshop Agion Omologiton, Nicosia. 8pm. Free. In English with English subtitles. Tel: 22-256782