Salah-Eddine Chihani
Fascinated by the world of the imagination, I first explored it through static and then animated images, to then extend myself to directing. To do this, I tried writing and discovered a new passion at the same time. Writing for me is to visit another world and live other lives without leaving my seat. It is also a laboratory where I have fun confronting my creations to each other. To simulate situations and let them evolve to discover the finality. Questioning and putting my own convictions and values against others. I instinctively lean towards science fiction and fantasy. Of course I am passionate about science and technology but if I like these genres it is because they allow me to explore the human being in new situations and to anticipate its evolution. This did not prevent me from writing a historical and dramatic feature film in which I was able to stage the reactions of different characters to a tense context followed by tragic events. This film is Heliopolis directed by Djaffar Gacem. It had a lot of success with the Algerian public and good reviews abroad during its race for the Oscar of the foreign film 2022. Link: https://variety.com/2021/film/reviews/heliopolis-review-1235112911/Born in 1979
Algeria
Screenplays
Heliopolis
The Zenatis, a wealthy family close to the colonists, live in Heliopolis, a colonial village built on fertile land in the east. Mokdad Zenati raises his children Mahfoud and Nedjma between Muslim and Western values, dreaming of seeing them play their part in a "French Algeria" in which he believes. But faced with a France brought to its knees by Germany during the Second World War, the Algerians start fighting again for their rights and even dream of freedom. The colonists see a fatal threat. Algeria was then in turmoil and the Zenatis experienced tensions and differences that tested the unity of the family. On May 8, 1945, while the rest of the world celebrated the end of the war, France made the Algerians pay for their dream of independence. The Zenatis were not exempt.
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