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SWEEPING ADDIS - The Street Sweepers of Addis Abeba

By

Corinne Kuenzli

A discreet, respectful portrait of four remarkable women, survival artists in a land marked by political tension.

Documentary

TV-Movie

50

Min.

Format

Digi Beta/ Beta SP, Pal

Sound

Stereo

Country

Switzerland

Languages

Amharic, German

Subtitles

German, English, French

Synopsis

Rainy season in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's capital city. Four million people, most of them are very poor. Sweeping the streets in Addis Ababa is women's work. They are hired by the various city districts. Their job is to beautify and modernize the city. It is a sought-after job. The street sweepers have no bank account. Their security comes from their religion and their mutual support of each other. The women join forces, save money together and help one another.

Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia with 4 million inhabitants, on a rainy day. A glance out the window of a moving car focuses in on shrouded female figures. With circumspection and respect filmmaker Corine Kuenzli, wins the confidence of these women who sweep the streets and they allow her to film them. In the privacy of their own four walls, the women remove their coverings, tell their life stories, speak about their worries and misery but also of their happiness and wishes for the future. Their intimate accounts are combined with atmospherically strong images which show the women in their private daily lives: with their families, celebrating together in honor of the Holy Mary and during their strenuous work on the dusty streets. The pictures reflecting hard reality are contrasted by the floating melodies of flutes composed by Ethiopian Abegasu Shiota. A multi-facetted portrait emerges of four remarkable survival artists in a land marked by political tension.

Crew

Director

Corinne Kuenzli

Script

Corinne Kuenzli, Peter Liechti

director of photography

Peter Liechti

Music

Abegasu Shiota

Sound

Ingrid Staedeli

Editing

Dieter Gränicher

Picture Design

Producer

Franziska Reck

More Crew Members

Cast

No items found.

Tarikua Kelbessa

and his Family

Wodnesh Girma

Genet Tegegn

Atsede Dagne

and their families

Festivals

2007

42. Solothurner Filmtage

Schweiz Première

Solothurn

Switzerland

2007

Internationales Filmfestival Freiburg

Fribourg

Switzerland

2007

Internationales Film Forum St. Petersburg

Time to live

St. Petersburg

Russia

2007

Doc outlook Market

Nyon

Switzerland

2007

Internationales Film Festival Innsbruck

Innsbruck

Austria

2007

Ecofilms International Films & Visual Arts Festival

Rodos

Greece

2007

DOCSUR

Festivalmarkt

Tenerifa

Spain

2007

Ismailia International Film Festival for Documentary & Short films

Ismailia

Egypt

2007

17. Weltfilmtage

Thusis

Switzerland

2007

Verzio Film Festival

Budapest

Hungary

2007

Terre des Femmes

Filmfestival

Tübingen

Germany

Awards

No items found.

Filmstills

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