Theeb (Wolf), Bedouin coming-of-age drama that’s up for foreign language Oscar

Low-budget ‘Bedouin western’ from Lebanon set a century ago during Arab revolt against Ottoman rule and featuring amateur actors is one of five films nominated in Academy Awards category

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Jacir Eid Al-Hwietat and Hussein Salameh Al-Sweilhiyeen in Theeb (Wolf).

Published: 7:31pm, 13 Jan 2016Updated: 10:37am, 15 Jan 2016

A coming-of-age drama set among Bedouin tribesmen roaming the desert is the first Oscar contender produced by Jordan’s nascent film industry.

Theeb (Wolf), set in 1916, tells the story of a playful 11-year-old Bedouin boy of the same name who gets caught up in his tribe’s alliance with the British against Ottoman rulers during the era’s Arab revolt.

Billed as a “Bedouin western” and an authentic portrayal of Bedouin culture, Theeb is one of five movies nominated for best foreign language film.

For the amateur cast from a Bedouin clan and for two young Jordanians writing and directing their first feature film, making Theeb has already been a wild ride, climaxing in the 2014 world premiere at the Venice Film Festival. That marked the first time the actors left Jordan or saw the entire film.

The film’s lead actors, Bedouins Jacir Eidal-Hwietat (right) and his cousin, Hussein Salameh al-Sweilhiyeen, pose for a photo in Wadi Rum, southern Jordan. The pair (below) in a scene from the film. Photo: AP

Theeb was filmed on super-f16mm stock to show off the desert colours.

They got a 10-minute standing ovation,” said director Naji Abu Nowar, who won for best director in the Horizons category in Venice.

“The Bedouins, it's a very macho culture, and you never see anyone cry, even the children ... and to see tears coming out of some of their eyes [during the premiere] was a really powerful moment,” he said, speaking from the Palm Springs International Film Festival, a last pre-Oscar opportunity to promote foreign films.