MAY ALLAH BLESS FRANCE! (QU’ALLAH BENISSE LA FRANCE!) Breakthrough

The stirring true story of a French teen’s struggle to escape from a poverty-stricken life of crime and into the sanctuary of hip-hop and Islam is brought to refreshing life by first-time filmmaker Abd Al Malik. A major force in the Parisian rap scene, Malik adapts his memoir detailing his early life and the hard roads that led to his success. With striking black-and-white photography and inventive editing techniques, Malik demonstrates a keen ability for elevating raw moments of hardship into acts of beauty, strength and passion. Winner of the Discovery Prize and FIPRESCI award at the Toronto International Film Festival, MAY ALLAH BLESS FRANCE! draws upon the forefathers of independent film, signifying the emergence of a powerful new voice.