Interview with the team of "My Driver and I" at RSIFF

MY DRIVER  AND I  screening at Red Sea International Film Festival 2024

With actress Roula Dakheelallah, actor Mustafa Shehata and producers Georgie Paget and Nils Astrand.

By Emmanuel Itier from Djeddah

From maverick director and actress, Ahd (‘La Sainteté’, ‘All of the old knives’, ‘Being’) comes a very emotional “ride”, inspired by the real life relationship between Ahd and her driver, a Sudanese immigrant, when she was a young woman, in Saudi Arabia. With a high degree of sensibility, Ahd, is painting a charming and haunting portrait of a rebellious young girl who is trying to find out her place in a culture in constant motion. This film will keep you on the edge of your inner tumult and will force you to revisit your own teenager experiences, when you also tried to figure who you are and where you belong. This is a story about tolerance and acceptance, about freedom of mind and inclusiveness. More than ever, there is a need for the communication of the souls and to figure out how we can co-exist and live in peace with each other; how we are the driver and the passenger of each other at the same time.

Fasten your mind belt and let’s drive “Home”, in oneness.

Q: How did you end up being involved with this film? What was the attraction? What inspired you to be part of it?

Mustafa: I play the driver in the movie. I met lots of people coming from Sudan and doing that job, being the drive for Saudis. The film is directed by filmmaker Ahd. She is the one who approached me, and it is inspired by her own relationship with her driver when she was a young girl. Bless his soul, the movie is dedicated to his memory.

Roula: I play Salma who is inspired by the life of director Ahd. I was “over the moon” when I was asked to read for this role and for director Ahd. I have been a longtime fan of her work. I have been so lucky to work for her. The writing was phenomenal and so close to my heart. It was really easy for me to relate to the character of Salma. Even if we come from two different economical social backgrounds. Salma is from the upper class and from a wealthy family. I come from a more middle class, a humbler class. So, it’s not so easy to understand how she caried herself during her life. But, between the writing and talking with Ahd, I was able to find common grounds with her. Salma has become a close part of who I am today.

Georgie Paget: I’m one of the producers. I was introduced by a mutual friend of Ahd and I who showed me the script. They were looking for a British producer. I didn’t what to expect at first, before reading the script. The surprise to me was to find out how much I connected with this character who was raised in a different country and a totally different culture. And yet I could relate to her experience and her life. Especially the notion of growing up and the teenage rebellious years we go through. As well as the relationship with your parents. How we try to make sense of life and to find your place in it. The resonated it with me and I was hooked.

Nils Astrand: I am also one of the producers in this film. This film came to me from Georgie and her partner Thembisa from Caspian films. I did work on several Saudi films with my company, Corniche Media. We have an history with filming in Jeddah and we wanted to bring to life this story taking place in Jeddah. Meeting with Ahd and reading the script, all of this moved me emotionally greatly. It was all about finding a movie highlighting the uniqueness of Jeddah and Sudan, cultures you don’t know about that much when you leave in The West. It’s about realizing we all have very similar human experiences even so we come from different parts of the World.