The film received support and grants from the Doha Film Institute and SFFILM Ranin Grant.
Iraq has chosen Hasan Hadi’s debut feature, The President’s Cake, as its submission for the Best International Feature Film category at the 98th Academy Awards.
The 2025 drama, co-produced internationally and titled in Arabic مملكة القصب (Mamlakat al-Qasab), marks Hadi’s first venture as both writer and director. The film stars Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Sajad Mohamad Qasem, Waheed Thabet Khreibat and Rahim AlHaj.
The President’s Cake had its world premiere at the Cannes Directors’ Fortnight in May, where it won both the People’s Choice audience award and the Caméra d’Or, presented to the best first feature across the Cannes Official Selection and its parallel sections.
Drawing inspiration from his own childhood in southern Iraq during the 1990s, Hadi captures the everyday struggles of life under Saddam Hussein’s regime amid crippling international sanctions. The story centers on Lamia, a nine-year-old girl who must bring a birthday cake to school to honour the president’s birthday—an innocent task that turns into a perilous quest for survival amid scarcity and fear.
Hadi, who is now based in New York, developed the project under TPC Film LLC, with producer Leah Chen Baker. International sales are being handled by Films Boutique, while UTA manages distribution in North America.
The film is made in association with Missing Piece Films, Working Barn Productions, Maiden Voyage Pictures and Spark Features.
In a statement, the Iraqi National Committee for Cinema praised the film’s selection as a reflection of its exceptional artistic quality and cinematic vision, noting its power to represent Iraq’s film industry on the international stage and highlight the country’s cultural identity.
The shortlist for the Oscar’s international feature film category will be revealed on December 16, followed by the announcement of the final nominees on January 22.
