The youth of Khartoum lived their whole life under Omar al-Bashir’s despotic rule, but in 2019 they started a revolution and won, only to have it snatched away from them by force. Live four years in the lives of young Sudanese activists as they struggle to create a future for all citizens.

From burgeoning Palestinian auteur Mahdi Fleifel (A World Not Ours, TIFF Docs ’12; A Drowning Man, Short Cuts ’17) comes an intuitive thriller about displaced cousins who will stop at nothing for a reliable path out of purgatory.

Stranded in a bleak, overcrowded neighborhood in Athens, cousins Chatila — played by a transformed Mahmood Bakri (Alam, TIFF ’22; The Teacher, TIFF ’23) — and Reda (newcomer Aram Sabbah) are endlessly plotting their escape. Coming from a Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon, the best friends, raised more like brothers, search for a life that offers more than displacement. To save money for fake passports, the men carry out petty scams, their intention to get to Germany where Chatila aspires to open a café and Reda dreams of protecting it. But when Reda dumps their savings on his opiate addiction, Chatila is forced to escalate, concocting a high-risk heist that will have them posing as smugglers.—TIFF

Content Warning: This film contains material that may be difficult for some viewers. Viewer discretion is advised.