The film draws inspiration from actual events in Tunisia, where sub-Saharan migrants faced a wave of hostility in the media and on the streets, resulting in violence, unjust detentions and the forced expulsion of thousands.
Tunisian filmmaker Erige Sehiri’s latest feature, Promised Sky, has been selected to open this year’s Un Certain Regard section at the 78th Festival de Cannes. The film will be screened on Wednesday, May 14, following the official opening ceremony scheduled for 7 PM. The festival, which runs from May 13 to 24, 2025, will spotlight Promised Sky as an introduction to one of Cannes’ most globally engaged film sections.
This marks Sehiri’s return to Cannes after her acclaimed debut Under the Fig Trees premiered in the Directors’ Fortnight in 2022 and went on to become Tunisia’s official entry for the 95th Academy Awards. Known for her journalistic and documentary background, Sehiri has developed a distinctive filmmaking style that fuses realism with emotionally resonant storytelling.
Set in Tunisia and inspired by true events, Promised Sky follows the intersecting lives of women navigating personal and political uncertainty. The story centres on Marie, an Ivorian pastor and former journalist living in Tunis, who offers shelter to two women—Naney, a young mother chasing hope, and Jolie, a determined student burdened with family expectations. When an orphaned girl enters their lives, their fragile solidarity is tested in a tense social landscape, exposing both vulnerability and resilience.
The cast includes acclaimed actor Aïssa Maïga alongside Laetitia Ky, Deborah Naney, and Tunisian actor Mohamed Grayaa. Sehiri not only directed and co-produced the film but also collaborated again with cinematographer Frida Marzouk, who previously worked with her on Under the Fig Trees and contributed to the John Wick franchise. The film is produced by Didar Domehri and distributed in the Arab world by MAD Distribution.
Beyond cinema, Sehiri has been an active voice in journalism and civil society. She co-founded INKYFADA, a platform for investigative journalism, and Al Khatt, a Tunisian NGO championing media literacy and press freedom. She is also one of the founding members of Rawiyat – Sisters in Film, a collective that supports women filmmakers from the Arab world and its diaspora.
