Sonita

Seen at the Viennale 2016: A wonderful story about an Afghanistan girl that goes her own way. Shown are the very first steps of emancipation from her family, her first successes and her going to an university at the United States for her further development. Rokhsareh Ghaemmaghami did this movie from the beginning even before her first professional steps into music making. But it is hard to believe that the film crew has been so lucky to choose an unknown girl (Sonita) for a documentation and that especially this girl will get so extremely successful. The story must be true, because Sonita is real and you can find songs by her on YouTube. But by watching the documentary in the cinema there is always the feeling of a mock-documentary in the air. Somehow Rokhsareh Ghaemmaghami did not manage to give me the feeling of truthfulness during watching of their movie.

I saw this film tonight at the Docedge Film Festival. It was pitch perfect despite a few tricky moments where we wonder if there is a con going down and we are all being manipulated. Director Rokhsareh Ghaemmaghami has managed to find just the right distance to reveal the story without changing the dynamic (too much) by being there.

Although there are a few anxious and tricky moments when we think the film will have to be abandoned as Sonita comes under pressure to return to Afghanistan to get married against her will.

Documentary film makers can change the story just by having the cameras out and recording but all of the narrative seems to flow with just the right balance of tension and resolve and no undue influence. Although clearly the director was able to help Sonita tell her story and to make connections which brought her to the attention of others.

The film maker Rokhsareh Ghaemmaghami was able to fit into the background as a supporter and also able to help Sonita help herself by helping her make a music video.

I was a bit wary of going to see Sonita because I thought it might be a bit like the stark realism of Omar but it is more like Wadjda or Lamb  (or even A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night) in tone.

The film makers manage to get up close and personal but they never intrude.