Sofia Djama

Sofia Djama is an Algerian film director. Her 2017 feature film debut, The Blessed, won three awards at the Venice Film Festival, including the Brian Award, given to the film which "best champions human rights, democracy, pluralism and freedom of thought", and the Lina Mangiacapre Award for a film which "changes the image of women in the cinema".

Djama's second short film, Softly One Saturday Morning (Mollement, un samedi matin), won two prizes at the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival in 2012.Her 2017 feature film debut is The Blessed (Les bienheureux), a coming-of-age story set in Algiers in 2008, starring Sami Bouajila and Nadia Kaci. The Blessed had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival, and was one of only two films there from African directors, the other being the Franco-Tunisian Abdellatif Kechiche, with his film, Mektoub, My Love: Canto Uno.The Blessed won three awards in the Orizzonti section (Horizons) section of the Venice Film Festival, with the Best Actress award going to Lyna Khoudri, the Brian Award, given to the film which "best champions human rights, democracy, pluralism and freedom of thought", and the Lina Mangiacapre Award for a film which "changes the image of women in the cinema". International sales and French distribution rights have been acquired by Bac Films.