Jordan has picked My Sweet Land, a documentary by director Sareen Hairabedian, to represent the country at the 97th Academy Awards next year in the best international feature film category.
The film follows Vrej, an 11-year-old boy who dreams of becoming a dentist. But Vrejj lives in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, the area at the center of a decades-long ethnic and territorial conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan. When violence again erupts, Vrej and his family have to flee. They return to find their home, and Vrej’s dreams of a normal life, in ruins.
My Sweet Land premiered at the Sheffield Documentary Film Festival this year. It is Hairabedian’s debut feature, following her documentary short We Are Not Done Yet, made for HBO.
Jordanian filmmaker Azza Hourani produced My Sweet Land, which was set up as an Irish-French-Jordanian-U.S. co-production.
To date, Jordan has only one single Oscar nomination to its credit, namely for Naji Abu Nowar’s Theeb in 2015.
The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences will announce its shortlist of the best international feature contenders on Dec. 17. Oscar nominations will be unveiled on Jan. 17, 2025. The 2025 Academy Awards will be held on Sunday, March 2.
