Still from Fardosa.
Fardosa
Fardosa is a beautiful, moving short film about a young Finnish-Somali woman oscillating between the different personalities she inhabits. Fardosa, meaning heaven, is on the cusp of adulthood; she’s one person with her friends, one person at home and another one her own. Throughout the film, we see her traverse through each manifestation, struggling to reconcile each identity as she dreams of escape.
““Sometimes, I feel like I live more than one life. There’s the one I live with my family. And another one I live with my friends. But then there’s the third one that I live by myself.””
This lyrical short follows Fardosa’s physical journey with friends to a place of freedom and self-expression; it also explores her inner journey as she turns towards a lighter way of being.
Created as a collective effort, the film is a collaboration between its co-stars Rukia Mahamed (Fardosa) and Iqlaas Osman (Fardosa’s cousin Iqlaas) who are both first-time actors, writers and filmmakers and director Anton Tammi. The team wanted to break away from conventional modes of filmmaking and chose to improvise the script to allow the cast to express their styles and stories with nuance.
The result is an energising insight into this young woman’s life and personal growth as she honours her different identities and finally releases her fears.
“It’s a young woman’s journey of growth within the generational and cultural framework. Finally, seeing Fardosa’s character floating to a dream-like state.”
Stills from Fardosa.