Cotton Queen

In a cotton-farming village in Sudan, teenage Nafisa is raised on heroic tales of battling British colonisers told by her grandmother, the village matriarch Al-Sit. But when a young businessman arrives from abroad with a new development plan and genetically engineered cotton, Nafisa becomes the center of a power play to determine the future of the village. Awakening her own strength, Nafisa sets out to save the cotton fields – and herself. Neither she nor her community will ever be the same again. Selected at the 2025 Venice Critics Week, this debut feature by Sudanese filmmaker Suzahhah Mirghani won Best Film at the Thessaloniki Film Festival.