Maghreb Film Festival: Poupiya

Djamel is a young man searching for love in a working-class neighbourhood. His life takes an unexpected turn when he crosses paths with Si Rachid, a retired colonel carrying a hunting rifle. What begins as a seemingly ordinary encounter gradually opens the door to a much larger history.

The Algerian War, the war in Indochina and the violence of the so-called Black Decade all haunt the film, but Bouaziz never puts these historical events centre stage. Instead, they surface through conversations, situations and silences. The past seeps into everyday life, passed from one generation to the next as a trauma that refuses to disappear.

With humour and an understated touch, Poupiya explores how the wounds of history continue to shape the lives of those who inherit them.