BEYOND DREAMS (Dröm Vidare, 2017) has returned from the 5th edition of Duhok International Film Festival in Iraq with two main awards – The Best Female Actor for the performannce of Evin Ahmad and The Best Film.

Evin Ahmad, who played the main character Mirja, received the Silver Leaf Award. "Lively, touching and powerful, she plays a young girl, torn between two worlds. She carries the film by expressing a great spectre of feelings – courage, hope, fear, despair, joy, friendship and hatred – in a convincing way," – the jury statement read.

BEYOND DREAMS also swiped the prize for the Best Film. "This story of courage and failure through no fault of her own is told from the perspective of the young woman, who is portrayed in an unsentimental but emphatic way. The film is at the same time tough and funny, the almost all-women-cast is directed brilliantly, the cinematography is excellent and the story moves forward at a fast pace. A very impressive achievement, politically relevant and highly entertaining."

BEYOND DREAMS is the feature-film debut by the director Rojda Sekersöz.