Mo Harawe
Directing
Biography
Mo Harawe was born in Mogadishu. Since 2009, he has lived in Vienna, where he began making films. He attended numerous film workshops and made five short films that have won awards at international festivals. He also works as a screenwriter and his feature film script To Mogadishu, developed at the Diverse Geschichten script lab, won the Dor Film award at the Diagonale in 2016. In 2019, Harawe won the BKA Startstipendium for his new feature film, The Village Next to Paradise, now in development.
Known For
On the day of a decisive court hearing and an important wedding performance, a quiet wedding musician finds his private life exposed to public scrutiny. Accused of exploiting his marriage, he moves between courtroom, city streets and stage, carrying the weight of judgment, loyalty, and unspoken guilt.
Whispers of a Burning Scent
In a windy Somali village, a newly assembled family must navigate between their different aspirations and the complex world surrounding them. Love, trust and resilience will power them through their life paths.
The Village Next to Paradise
The film deals with the topic of identity.
Ausweis
For over a decade, toxic waste has been dumped illegally on the coastline of Somalia. The earthquake and tsunami in 2004 damaged the toxic containers and spilled waste, which caused the spread of diseases. Many people left their villages but some stayed and lived with the consequences.
Life on the Horn
Somalia. A policewoman sits in her parked car. After a while, she gets out, puts on her service cap, and enters the prison. There, decisive hours have dawned for young Farah. Organizational machinery starts up around him. Farah is examined by a doctor, instructed by the bailiff, and looked after by an imam. Farah is waiting for his parents to visit. “How are you?” is the question everyone asks him that day. Each time, “Good” is his concise answer. Only when the policewoman takes Farah out of town the next morning does the unspeakable become a painful reality.