COTTON QUEEN (15)

Cotton Queen is a striking folktale of coming of age and cultural changes in Sudan’s cotton fields.

In a cotton-farming village in Sudan, teenage Nafisa has been raised on heroic tales of battling British colonisers told by her grandmother, Al-Sit, the village matriarch.

But when a young businessman arrives from abroad with a new development plan and genetically engineered cotton, Nafisa becomes the focal point of a power play to determine the future of the village.

Guided by her battle-scarred grandmother, whose memories of resistance against British colonialism still shape the village, Nafisa awakens to her own power and sets out to save the cotton fields – and herself. Neither she nor her community will ever be the same again.

Expanded from her award-winning 2020 short Al-Sit, Suzannah Mirghani’s captivating debut is a sweeping reflection on Sudanese womanhood, heritage and transformation. Filmed in Egypt after the outbreak of the ongoing war in Sudan and performed by Sudanese refugees, the film’s own production mirrors its themes of displacement, resilience and creative endurance.

Sudan/Germany/France (Arabic dialogue with English subtitles), 2025, 94 mins

Official Trailer