Direction: Hasan Hadi
Country: Iraq
Humor, hardship, constant quarrels, and quiet sorrow shape The President’s Cake, a drama of remarkable sensitivity written and directed by debut filmmaker Hasan Hadi. Set in Saddam Hussein’s Iraq, the film follows nine-year-old Lamia (Baneen Ahmad Nayyef), who never parts with her beloved rooster, after she is assigned the daunting task of baking a cake for the president’s birthday celebration at school. To accomplish this, she must travel in search of scarce and costly ingredients across a country ravaged by food shortages, inflation, and poverty. Closely accompanying her is her loyal friend Saeed (Sajad Mohamad Qasem), a young pickpocket.
The story draws from Hadi’s own childhood memories of school life under the regime, capturing both the cruelty of authoritarian rule and the resilience and vitality of children confronted with adversity. Filmed on location in Iraq with an impressive sense of composition and visual authenticity, the film is elevated by the outstanding performances of its non-professional cast, whose natural presence recalls the realism and emotional delicacy of Abbas Kiarostami’s cinema.
Heartbreaking yet poetic, The President’s Cake unfolds as a perceptive and elegantly crafted fable, enriched by refined imagery and a bittersweet emotional tone. Its Caméra d’Or win at the Cannes Film Festival feels entirely deserved.
