The Trailer for The President’s Cake: Iraq’s Entry for the Oscars and Cannes Winner Debuts This February

      One of the standout features at Cannes Directors' Fortnight earlier this year, Hasan Hadi's directorial debut The President's Cake received the Audience Award and the Caméra d'Or in this section. Now acquired by Sony Pictures Classics, Iraq's Oscar contender will begin an awards-qualifying run on December 12 at NYC's Village East and LA's Laemmle Monica Film Center, followed by a theatrical release on February 6. Prior to the release, the first trailer has been unveiled.

      Here’s the synopsis: “As people in 1990s Iraq struggle to navigate war and food shortages, the President mandates that every school in the nation prepare a cake for his birthday. Despite her attempts to avoid selection, 9-year-old Lamia is picked from her classmates. The young girl must draw upon her resourcefulness and creativity to gather the necessary ingredients and bake the obligatory cake in THE PRESIDENT’S CAKE.”

      Rory O’Connor noted in his Cannes review, “Hasan Hadi’s Cake premiered in Directors’ Fortnight and won the audience award. Then, during the closing weekend, it was awarded Cannes’ prestigious Camera d’Or for best first feature by a jury led by Alice Rohrwacher. This achievement is significant for any film, especially for one representing Iraq for the first time in the festival's storied history. Hadi currently resides in New York and works as an adjunct professor at NYU Tisch, but the narrative is inspired by his personal experiences from that era—particularly the enforced tradition of celebrating Hussein’s birthday, which was obligatory for all citizens regardless of their circumstances or U.S. sanctions. The film addresses this scenario with a touch of dark humor. A small element of this involved drawing names in the classroom, with the unluckiest student tasked with providing the cake. Not fulfilling this duty resulted in serious repercussions.”

      Watch the trailer below.