On The Surface
Ajyal Competition
Fan Sissoko / Short Narrative / Iceland, United States of America, Mali / 2021 / 5 min / Colour
In English / Arabic subtitles
Interests: Animation
Synopsis
‘On the Surface' is a short contemplative animation about a young Black woman who goes swimming in the Icelandic Sea. There, she reflects on her experience of raising a child in a country that feels nothing like home. She relives her traumatic pregnancy and postnatal depression as she enters the freezing water. Facing her fears, she begins to relax in the deep wild abyss—helping her to heal on her emotional journey.
About the Directors
Fan Sissoko is a French-Malian artist and filmmaker based in Reykjavik, with a background in design for social change. Her work explores themes of migration, motherhood, otherhood and neurodiversity. Notable commissions include work for the Migration Museum, the Museum of London, the Science Gallery Dublin, and the National Trust. Her animated short film 'On the Surface' was awarded a grant from Art with Impact, screened at festivals around the world, including Clermont Ferrand ISFF (France), and won the Heartwired Award at Our Heritage, Our Planet Film Festival (US).
Credits
- Director
- Fan Sissoko
- Screenwriter
- Fan Sissoko
- Producer
- Fan Sissoko, Art with Impact
- Editor
- Fan Sissoko
- Production Company
- Art With Impact
- Sound
- Arnar Guðjonsson
- Music
- Tariqh Akoni, Hafdís Bjarnadóttir
- Distributor
- Sudu Connexion
- Cast
- Enid Mbabazi