SECTIONS // PANORAMA OF THE SPANISH DOCUMENTARY

Socotra, la isla de los genios (Socotra, the Island of Djinns)

Out of Competition
Jordi Esteva
64' / 2015 / Spain
Sogotri
Spanish subtitled

“The first and unique documental spoken in the genuine Soqotrí language”
The film is the story of a trip on the remote island of Socotra in the Indian Ocean, in front of Yemen.
Socotra is isolated during the monsoon winds, when is imposible to land. This isolation has preserved a unique environment. Frankincense and myrrh trees grow freely on Socotra.
Ahmed Afrar with some companions and three cameleers with their animals trek to the mountains before the rainy season.
During the trip, the socotrians speak tell stories by the fire. During the night, conversation turns to legends of djinns and monstrous snakes that dwell in the cavernous interior of the island. A surprising and vanishing world is revealed.
Is the first and only movie spoken entirely in the genuine socotra language, A southern arabian language related to the old language of the Kingdom of Sheba.

Main Festivals & Awards

Visions Du Réel International Documentary Film Festival, Nyon, Abril 2016, Suiza / Málaga Festival de Cine Español, Abril 2016, Spain

Director's Biography

Jordi Esteva, Barcelona 1951. Writer and photographer specialized in Africa and the East. He has lived five years in Cairo, Egypt. In 2010 he began filming documentaries, almost always in black and white, about worlds that are disappearing like animalism in Africa o the remote island of Socotra. He has directed ‘Retorno al país de las almas’ (feature lenght documentary), ‘Komian’ (feature lenght documentary), Socotra, the island of djinns (feature lenght documentary).