Point du Jour International | GARDEN OF WONDERS, Anush HAMZEHIAN

Hidden behind the walls of the women’s prison on Giudecca, one of the islands south of Venice, there is an unexpected feature: a large vegetable garden. There are no surveillance cameras here, no wardens…just female prisoners at work.

They plant, prune and water to the sounds coming from the lagoon. For the chosen few admitted to this section, this small patch of land represents a concrete link to the outside world. They feel free to talk, telling their story…their hopes “for afterwards”.

“Garden of wonders” is not a film in praise of the redemptive virtues of incarceration, far from it. It is a human encounter with these women who “hang in there” thanks to a turnip or a cherry. Their determination to maintain contact with “real life” through labouring the land is touching, almost poetic.

Festivals and Awards:
* 2012: Award "Valorisation de la recherche", Festival "Filmer le travail" (Filming Work), Poitier , France (Feb. 2012)
* 2012: Selected at the FIGRA, Le Touquet, France (March2012)
* 2012: Selected at "Cineambiente", Turin

GARDEN OF WONDERS

Director(s): Anush HAMZEHIAN – Writer(s): Anush HAMZEHIAN Contact Print page