Cinemaximiliaan and BIRMM invite you to a screening of The Mind Game (Sajid Khan Nasiri,
Eefje Blankevoort & Els van Driel, 2023, 61'; VO Dari, Dutch, English with ENG subtitles) + dinner and Q&A on Thursday 19th November at TRACK Brussels (Address: Rue du Progrès 76).
You're welcome from 19:00 for a Palestinian buffet by chef Ashour. The screening is at 20:30, followed by a Q&A with protagonist and director, Sajid Khan Nasiri - hosted by Tulya Su Guven and Karam Asoos.
The personal journey of Sajid, an Afghan youth, forms the heart of this intimate documentary. Structured like a road movie, his arduous trek offers a powerful insight into the experience of being a young refugee. Through a blend of smartphone footage and interviews, this documentary is sure to move and engage your students.
They call it "the game"—the perilous journey undertaken by many unaccompanied minors in search of safety in Western Europe. For Sajid Khan Nasiri, the game began after the Taliban murdered his father. Traveling through Iran, Turkey, and Eastern Europe, the fourteen-year-old draws ever closer to his final destination. He documents his journey on his phone, reporting back to filmmakers Eefje Blankevoort and Els van Driel. Once in Belgium, he hopes to build a future, but instead faces suspicion and distressing news from home.
This screening is part of CINEMA ROOTS, a three-day festival commissioned to close the CERV project Bridging Borders. Bringing together young people across 10 countries, the project explored how cultural exchange can challenge polarisation, foster connections across communities, and create space for young people with migrant backgrounds to shape the societies they live in. Check out the rest of the programme on Cinemaximiliaan's social media.