AFRI, The Coming Night

When a rare natural occurrence overtakes a mythical desert village, a sister is forced to search for her alienated brother and face the mysterious, ineffable darkness of the coming night.

  • yossera bouchtia
    Director
  • Yossera Bouchtia
    Writer
  • Jabari Mcdonald
    Producer
  • Yossera Bouchtia
    Producer
  • Hanane Assai
    Key Cast
    "Lead"
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Thriller, Fantasy, myth
  • Runtime:
    10 minutes 2 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    January 1, 2021
  • Production Budget:
    7,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Morocco
  • Country of Filming:
    Morocco
  • Language:
    Arabic
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Black & White and Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - yossera bouchtia

Yossera Bouchtia is a Moroccan American drama and thriller screenwriter/director whose work is committed to challenging stereotypes, dispelling misconceptions and shedding light on hidden truths while bridging the gap between the eastern and western worlds. Yossera received her M.F.A. in Film Directing from Columbia University in New York City, and earned both a B.S. in Psychology and a B.A. in Cinema from Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). Her narrative short films have screened at the Salento International Film Festival, LA Shorts Fest, Flickers Rhode Island International Film Festival, FilmShop Breakthrough Series, and Women’s International Film Festival in Salé, Morocco. At present, she is developing a limited series, Yasmine/Jasmine, which was selected by the Cine Qua Non Lab for the Storylines 2020 program. Yossera is currently based in Virginia and is an Assistant Professor of Cinema at VCU School of the Arts.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

“The seed of this story come to me by way of a fellow
collaborator, Omar Kakar who envisioned a story world
which had multiple suns and consequently faced a rare
phenomena of witnessing the suns set, creating night for
the first time within a mythic landscape. I was inspired
by ancient folklore and oral stories in Morocco which
pre-date Islam yet are deeply intertwined with Muslim
perspectives. In this world, with the help of my story
collaborators, I began to build upon this mythology that
emphasizes the fear and awe that comes with the
uncertainty of phenomenons within the context of two
central characters — an orphaned brother and sister
who must fight to stay together in the face of the
unknown. Through these characters’ emotional arcs, I
discovered Afri, an ancient feminine deity known to
Africans as a powerful Goddess who fiercely protects her
devotees. Given the significance and relevance of the
feminine presence in our world today, I believe this tale
is a timely one that connects to a deep truth and instinct
we all share, which is a needed resurgence of a more
compassionate and nurturing existence.”