POW Film Fest, Portland's premiere festival highlighting women and non-binary directors, is proud to announce the festival’s opening night film and the Portland premiere of FAYA DAYI. The short film "Where Should We Go" by Che O'Grady, will precede the feature.
Directed by Jessica Beshir an Ethiopian-Mexican director, producer and cinematographer, FAYA DAYI examines Ethiopia’s most lucrative cash crop, a stimulant leaf called khat, chewed for religious meditations by Sufi Muslims. The film explores the khat trade by weaving a tapestry of intimate stories of people caught between violent government repression, khat-induced fantasies and treacherous journeys beyond their borders, offering a window into the dreams of the youth who long for a better life.
After premiering at Sundance 2021, FAYA DAYI went on to win the Grand Jury Prize and Fipresci International Critics Award at Visions du Réel. The Hollywood Reporter calls the film, “A nonfiction work of sensory immersion that's part anthropology, part poetry.