February 18 - Nadine Labaki

Happy 46th Birthday, Nadine Labaki! Born today in 1974, this Lebanese activist, actress and director first came into the spotlight as an actress in the early 2000s.  

  

However, her filmmaking career began in the late 2000s after the release of her debut feature. 

This was with the 2007 Lebanese drama/comedy-drama film 'Caramel'. It had premiered at the 50th Cannes Film Festival in May of that same year. 

  

Among her work, Labaki is best known for co-conceiving, co-writing, directing and co-starring in the 2018 Lebanese/American/French/Cypriot/Qatari/British drama film 'Capharnaüm'('Capernaum').  

  

The film tells that after running away from his negligent parents, committing a violent crime and being sentenced to five years in jail, a hardened, streetwise twelve-year-old Lebanese boy named Zain El Hajj (Zain al-Rafeea) sues his parents in protest of the life they have given him. 

Labaki also co-stars as the boy's mother, credited as Nadine. 

'Capernaum' is currently the highest-grossing Arabic film, and the highest-grossing Middle-Eastern film of all time, after becoming a sleeper hit at the international box office.

'Capernaum’ later received critical acclaim, with particular praise given to Labaki's direction, Al Rafeea's performance and the film's "documentary-like realism".  

Writing for The New York Times, A. O. Scott, along with and American film critic Manohla Dargis, named it as one of the greatest films of 2018.  

The following year, ‘Capernaum’ was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, among several other accolades. This occurred at the 91st Academy Academy Awards in late February 2019. 

Nabaki is also the first female Arab director to be nominated for an Oscar in the category for Best Foreign Language Film of the Year (Lebanon)

‘Capernaum’ is currently the highest-grossing Arabic film, and also the highest-grossing Middle-Eastern film of all time. This was after becoming a sleeper hit at the international box office with $68.6 million worldwide, against a production budget of $4 million.  

Its largest international market is China, where the film became asurprise blockbuster with over $54 million.    

  

Labaki is known for demonstrating everyday aspects of Lebanese life and covering a range of political issues such as war, poverty, and feminism. 

  

Labaki has been active from 1997–present. 

  

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