Mediha

Mediha is a young Yazidi woman who has survived genocide, kidnapping, and slavery. We follow Mediha in her quest to find her family, who are still missing and are believed to be in the notorious Al-Hol camp.

Mediha and her younger brothers Ghazwan and Adnan are trying to rebuild their lives after being kidnapped by The Islamic State. Finding their family is complicated, so the three siblings turn to a network working to rescue Yazidis exposed to human trafficking for help. Hasan Oswald's important documentary shows the lasting human consequences of the atrocities committed by The Islamic State. Over three years, Mediha takes us on a journey to find justice, confronting her traumas and pain through video diaries to confront those responsible.

«[…] through a combination of cinematic empathy and restrained filmmaking, Oswald (Higher Love)—who often allows Mediha and her siblings to record the footage we see—presents a moving treatment that celebrates human resilience. Life is hard, but is also beautiful.»
– Christopher Llewellyn Reed, Film Festival Today –

Red.

Director

Hasan Oswald is an award-winning documentary filmmaker. He made his directorial debut with Higher Love in 2020, which won the jury prize at Slamdance that year. His second documentary film, Mediha, premiered at DOC:NYC in 2023.

This film is part of