Dunya and Desie Go to Morocco

Dana Nechushtan,

The Netherlands, 2007, 88 min

In Dutch and Arabic with English subtitles

Official Holland entry for the Oscar 2009

Script: Robert Alberdingk Thijm

Cast: Maryam Hassouni, Eva van de Wijdeven

Saturday, 8 November 2008, at 3:00 p.m

Innis Town Hall

Dunya & Desie is a heart-warming, coming-of-age movie about best friends Dunya and Desie. Dunya is Moroccan, raised in Holland. Desie is as Dutch as cheese, wooden shoes and tulips. On her 18th birthday, Dunya learns that her family wants her to get married to a cousin from Morocco. She has to go to Morocco with her family to meet him. At the same time Desie finds out she is pregnant, which makes her want to meet her own biological father. When she finds out he lives in Morocco, she also decides to go there to find him.

But Morocco isn't Amsterdam and they end up in all kinds of humorous and confronting situations, forcing them both to make life altering decisions.

This story of friendship and understanding is tackled with energy and humor. Dunya and Desie struggle with parental expectations and what it means to straddle two cultures.

Watch trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I46kbcP6dAM (trailer in Dutch)

Dana Nechushtan

Born in 1970, Dana graduated in 1994 from Nederlandse Film en Televisie Academie (NFTVA), with the movie Djinn (1994), which won the 'Tuschinsky Award' at the 'Nederlands Film Festival' in 1994. Her filmography includes Total Loss (2000), Necrocam (2001) and Nightrun (2006). She has also directed a number of TV productions including the popular Dunya and Desie series.