Ruth Nirere

In 1994, in Kigali, the capital of Rwanda, during the first days of the Tutsi genocide. Jacqueline, a young Tutsi nanny, returns home, in her village, desperately looking for her children. When she finds them lying lifeless among the corpses, Jacqueline takes refuge in the forest, where she gradually sinks into madness...

Balthazar is a young African filmmaker on the brink of directing his first project, The Cycle of the Cockroach, a fictional story about a young woman who survived unspeakable atrocities only to find herself committed to the same mental institution as a man driven insane by the crimes he perpetrated during the war. Potential funders for the film insist the themes are too bleak and pessimistic-they encourage Balthazar to make a "message" film that raises awareness about gender-based violence or HIV/AIDS instead. But he refuses to give up. Instead of telling his production team the news, Balthazar continues preparations for the film without financing or equipment. After rehearsing a scene with each of the characters, reality blurs and scenes from the script materialize, provoking the question: Can a film like this exist only in the director's dreams? Armed with a daring and creative visual language...

Following the story of a genocide survivor as well as son of a killer, the film revolves around the meaning of an old coat and its symbolic value for the young boy’s dramatic past. (African Film Festival, New York)

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