Omar. How Not to Be Different 2020

Directed by Krzysztof Dzięciołowski

In a small Polish town, a young Tatar man is entering adulthood navigating between his Muslim community and local peers, between his mother and his girlfriend. He lives in a small town of Sokółka in the Podlasie region, in a remote corner of Catholic Poland, one of the most mono-ethnic countries in the world. Omar is a normal teenager, but at the same time he is also different – by religion, heritage, and looks. We watch him as he straddles the different parts of his identity as they become increasingly difficult to keep together; in the background, we witness the struggles of a community to remain distinct and survive.