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New Film Explores Unlikely Bond Between Asylum Seeker and Ex-Addict
25 Jun
Summary
- The film follows an 18-year-old Senegalese asylum seeker named Mariama.
- She forms an unexpected connection with Stella, a woman overcoming addiction.
- The movie makes its world premiere at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.

The Lion at My Back, a new film by director Tonia Mishiali, is set to have its world premiere on July 6. The movie will be showcased in the Crystal Globe competition at the 60th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
The film centers on Mariama, a Senegalese asylum seeker in Cyprus who has just turned 18. She forms a profound and unexpected connection with Stella, a woman in her 40s who is striving for a fresh start after overcoming addiction.
Described as a vivid, heartwarming, and hopeful story, The Lion at My Back explores how family bonds and motherly love can emerge in the most unlikely circumstances. Tonia Mishiali, also known for her 2018 debut feature Pause, wrote the screenplay for this new project with Dianne Jones and Simona Nobile.
Elena Kallinikou and Sokhna Diallo lead the cast, joined by Prokopis Agathocleous and Herodotos Miltiadous. The film is produced by Mishiali along with Katarzyna Ozga, Nicolas Steil, Marinos Charalambous, Vladimir Subotic, and Antoine Simkine.