Short Films Screening: The Martyr, Muna and, The Earth Has Ears

Almas Art Foundation in partnership with Kayd are inviting you an evening of short film screenings by Somali filmmakers, including The Martyr (2018) by Ahmed Abdullahi, Muna (2023) by Warda Mohamed, The Earth Has Ears (2025) by Khadar Ayderus Ahmed. The screenings will be followed by a Q&A session with the filmmakers.

The Martyr (2018)

Asia lives in a suburb of Stockholm with her two children, Omar and Sara. Sara, the youngest, is trying to live a normal teenage life, while Omar has been in trouble with the law. Just as Asia finally feels he's on the right track, she begins to suspect that he may have been radicalised. In despair, she tries to find out what's going on in his life and looks for help.

The Martyr had its world premiere at Gothenburg international film festival and has won numerous prizes including Best Short Film at Guldbaggen Awards which is considered the equivalent of the Oscars.

Director: Ahmed Abdullahi is a Somali-born filmmaker based in Stockholm. Ahmed has directed short films, feature films as well as TV-series.

Muna (2023)

British-Somali teen Muna is desperate to go on the school trip - but her parents aren't so sure. Tragedy strikes when her grandfather dies back in Somalia, and Muna must navigate a confusing mourning period for someone she never really knew - all while still hoping to persuade her mother to change her mind.

Muna was selected in Generation 14plus section at the 74th Berlin international film festival in 2023. The film has won Best Short Film at Minneapolis St. Paul International film festival as well as Sunderland Shorts film festival. The film has also received nomination for Best short film at London Critics Circle Film Awards.

Writer/Director: Warda Mohamed is an interdisciplinary director, writer, and filmmaker. She made her directorial debut with the groundbreaking short film "Sorry My Somali Is Not Very Good" which premiered on BFI Player and garnered recognition at the Aesthetica Film Festival in 2021.

The Earth Has Ears (2025)

In a remote Somali village abandoned by its men for tribal warfare, a female gravedigger seizes the death of the men not as a misfortune but as a golden opportunity to profit. However, her growing greed begins to unravel the lives of those around her. The film will have its world premiere in summer 2025.

Writer/Director: Khadar Ayderus Ahmed is a Somali-Finnish filmmaker. He is best known for his feature directorial debut "The Gravedigger's Wife"which premiered in Competition in Cannes Critics' Week in 2021. The film has been screened in more than 100 film festivals around the globe including Toronto International Film Festival 2021, where it won Amplify Voices Award and three Audience Awards in Europe and North-America.

Followed by Q/A with the Short Films Directors