Faya Dayi | |
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Directed by | Jessica Beshir |
Written by | Jessica Beshir |
Produced by | Jessica Beshir |
Cinematography | Jessica Beshir |
Edited by |
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Production companies |
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Distributed by | |
Release dates |
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Running time | 118 minutes |
Countries |
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Languages | Oromifa, Harari, Amharic |
Faya Dayi is an 2021 American-Ethiopian documentary film, directed, written, starring and produced by Jessica Beshir. It explores the rituals of khat, a psychoactive plant that plays an important role in Ethiopia's economy and culture.
The film had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 30, 2021. It was released on September 3, 2021, by Janus Films.
The film explores the religious rituals of khat chewing in Harar. [1]
The film had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival documentary competition on January 30, 2021. [2]
In April 2021, Janus Films and Mubi acquired U.S. and international distribution rights to the film, respectively. [3] [4] It was released in the USA on September 3, 2021. [5]
Faya Dayi received positive reviews from film critics. It holds a 91% approval rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 11 reviews, with a weighted average of 8.10/10. [6]
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The Cinema of Ethiopia and the film industry in general are relatively recent phenomena in Ethiopia. The Ethiopian film industry is growing but faces many problems that have prevented it from fully flourishing. Historically, live stage theater enjoyed more popularity in Ethiopia, creating a handful of relatively successful stage actors. Ethiopian films began modernizing in the 2000s, implementing Amharic, but due to wide home video and DVD distribution, they are often frustrated by copyright infringement in the presence of piracy. This was reduced in the early 2010s with the intervention of the government and the imposition of policy. Despite recent developments, the Ethiopian film industry continues to lack quality compared to modern world cinema and has a low budget amateurish style.
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