Experiencing Interruptions?

Unwanted

Alban, a lonely teenage boy, who lives in Amsterdam with Zana, his refugee mother from Kosovo, keeps getting into trouble while yearning for her acceptance. But the traumas caused by the war, which his mother initially hides away from him, turn eventually his world upside down.

  • Edon Rizvanolli
    Director
  • Edon Rizvanolli
    Writer
  • Edon Rizvanolli
    Producer
  • Adriana Matoshi
    Key Cast
    "Zana"
    Babai, Kthimi
  • Jason de Ridder
    Key Cast
    "Alban"
  • Danny Noordanus
    DoP
  • Annemiek van Gorp
    Co Producer
  • Rene Goossens
    Co Producer
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    T'padashtun
  • Project Type:
    Feature
  • Genres:
    Drama, Romance, War, Teenagers
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 25 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    June 20, 2017
  • Production Budget:
    67,000 EUR
  • Country of Origin:
    Kosovo
  • Country of Filming:
    Kosovo, Netherlands
  • Language:
    Albanian, Dutch, English
  • Shooting Format:
    Red 5K
  • Aspect Ratio:
    1.85:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • 52nd Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
    Karlovy Vary
    Czech Republic
    July 1, 2017
    World Premiere
    East of the West Competition
  • 9th Prishtina International Film Festival
    Prishtina
    Kosovo
    July 13, 2017
    National Premiere
    Blood & Honey Competition
  • 37th Netherlands Film Festival
    Utrecht
    Netherlands
    September 23, 2017
    National Premiere
    Dutch Film Critics Award Nomination
  • 10th Cineast Festival of Central & Eastern European Film
    Luxembourg
    Luxembourg
    October 16, 2017
  • 15th Tirana International Film Festival
    Tirana
    Albania
    November 4, 2017
    Albanian Premiere
    Best Screenplay
  • 16th Cinedays Festival of European Film
    Skopje
    November 11, 2017
    Ballkan Film Competition
  • 66th Manheim-Heidelberg International Film Festival
    Mannheim
    Germany
    November 16, 2017
    Main International Competition
  • 48th International Film Festival of India
    Goa
    India
    November 21, 2017
    Indian Premiere
  • 39th Cairo International Film Festival
    Cairo
    Egypt
    November 26, 2017
  • 33rd Santa Barbara International Film Festival
    Santa Barbara
    February 8, 2018
    US Premiere
    Main International Competition
  • 12th Festival of Tolerance
    Zagreb
    Croatia
    April 11, 2018
  • 37th Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival
    Minneapolis
    United States
    April 18, 2018
    Minnesota
    Official Selection
  • 15th Crossing Europe
    Linz
    Austria
    April 25, 2018
  • 13th SEE Film Festival Los Angeles
    Los Angeles
    United States
    April 29, 2018
    Audience Award / Main Competition
  • 15th Netia Off Camera
    Krakow
    Poland
    May 2, 2018
    Main International Competition
  • 3rd SEE Film Festival Berlin
    Berlin
    May 25, 2018
    Best Director, Best Actress
  • 8th SEE Film Festival Paris
    Paris
    France
    Best Actress
  • 15th Skip City International D-Cinema Festival
    Kawaguchi, Saitama
    Japan
    July 15, 2018
    Japan
    International Competition
Distribution Information
  • Mokumfilm
    Country: Netherlands
    Rights: All Rights
Director Biography - Edon Rizvanolli

Edon Rizvanolli (born in Pristina, Kosovo) began his acting career in Austria in 1992. He also studied acting for two years at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute in New York. In 1998 he shot his first short experimental film Blownaway, which was followed by the award-winning documentary Shuffle – Politics, Bullshit and Rock ’n’ Roll (Shuffle – Politike, laknurë dhe rokenroll), covering the alternative music scene in Pristina. He has lived in Amsterdam since 2007, where he works as an actor, director and film editor. Unwanted is his feature film debut, screened at Karlovy Vary in its world premiere.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

UNWANTED is a social drama, set in present day Amsterdam, which deals with the aftermath and the trauma caused by the 1999 war in Kosovo, as experienced from two different perspectives. It also addresses the issues of belonging and identity of the second generation of migrants living in Western Europe.
I left my home country Kosovo as a teenager. Since then I lived in several different countries and have experienced what it is like to be a foreigner. And also what it is like to turn into a stranger in your own country. I grew up in a state which was filled with hatred for “the others” who spoke a different language, “looked” differently and thought differently. And all of these experiences are now part of my personality and influence my every day life. They also spill over into the lives of the people around me; my family and friends. Living in various places for such a long period of time meant also a constant fight to reject identities which were forced on me, identities which, to me, felt fake. Moreover it was a continuous struggle to embrace values which I appreciated but had not yet been accustomed to. Most of all however, it was a struggle to accept and be accepted.
And acceptance is also the main theme in UNWANTED.