DIRECTOR/SCREENPLAY: Yared Zeleke
PRODUCERS: Ama Ampadu, Laurent Lavole, Johannis Rexin
PRODUCTION CO: Slum Kid Filma
PHOTOGRAPHY: Josée Deshaies
EDITOR: Véronique Bruque
MUSIC: Christophe Chassol
WITH: Rediat Amare (Ephraïm), Kidist Siyum (Tsion), Welela Assefa (Emama), Surafel Teka (Solomon), Rahel Teshome (Azeb), Indris Mohamed (Abraham), Bitania Abraham (Mimi)​

​FESTIVALS: Cannes, London

REVIEWS

“Ethiopian filmmaker Yared Zeleke’s first feature looks at a little boy in an Ethiopian village who loves cooking much more than ploughing the land. This beautifully crafted film (shot by Josée Deshaies, cinematographer of the lush Saint Laurent) provides an insider view of rural life, observing the strength of women in a purely patriarchal society – and portraying a new generation bridling at gender expectations and traditional mores.

After the death of his mother, nine-year-old Ephraim is taken from his drought-stricken village in the volcanic flatlands to relatives in the south, while his father heads to the city to look for work. With his beloved pet lamb in tow, he’s stretching the limited resources of his new family. Ephraim’s Uncle Solomon wants to make a man out of the boy, though Ephraim would much rather stay at home with the women, under the benign eye of the matriarch, Emama, and dedicate himself to his passion: cooking. Ephraim’s cousin is also challenging Solomon’s authority: she’d rather read books than get married.

When Solomon orders him to slaughter the sheep for the upcoming holiday feast, Ephraim devises an ingenious scheme to save his pet and return to his village.”

– Bill Gosden, NZIFF 2015

“Much of Lamb’s run time is spent simply absorbing the culture, and Zeleke has a really sharp eye. Amid the gorgeous landscapes, we watch the family as they farm and celebrate, living a lifestyle far removed from one lived in the West.”

​– Jordan Hoffman, The Guardian

FILM SOCIETY SCREENINGS

Queenstown
​Tuesday, 9 August, 8.15pm

​Whanganui     
Monday, 22 August, 7:00pm

Timaru
Monday, 29 August, 6.00pm

Nelson
Tuesday, 13 September, 6.00pm

Auckland     
Monday, 19 September, 6:15pm 

Canterbury
Monday, 26 September, 7.00pm

Hamilton     
Monday, 3 October, 7.30pm

Dunedin     
Wednesday, 12 October, 7:30pm

Tauranga
Thursday, 20 October, 6.30pm

New Plymouth
Wednesday, 26 October, 6.00pm
MORE AFRICAN CINEMA >>
African Cinema is presented in
​co-operation with the Institut Français and the Embassy of France