Birthday Girl, directed and written by Bader Mohamed

Birthday Girl, directed and written by Bader Mohamed, is a quiet study of a moment when private truth presses against what is expected from you as an individual. The film was inspired by a childhood friend of Bader’s, whose anxieties about reaching adulthood without meeting the conventional milestones expected of and from her. Rather than dramatize that fear loudly, the film chooses the gentler, more revealing register of the everyday, where doubts unravel in silence.

The story takes place over the course of Maryam’s birthday, which coincides with preparations for her engagement ceremony. Maryam holds a secret that could jeopardize her future union. This tension is not played as spectacle, but with subtleties.

Wafa Mohamed plays Maryam with an interiority that feels lived rather than performed. Rashed Hasan and Suhail Tariq Albadi provide counterparts who embody the social expectations circling around her. The cinematography by Marc Pascual captures the emotion unfolding beautifully. Editor Khaled Moeit maintains a rhythm that mirrors thought rather than plot. The music, composed by Einar Sv. Tryggvason, settles into the film like breath.