Noaz Deshe’s XOFTEX wins a special mention at Karlovy Vary

Coming out the gate swinging, Noaz Deshe’s XOFTEX is taking home a Special Jury Mention at the Crystal Globe Competition of the Karlovy Vary Film Festival after holding a packed world premiere at the festival’s Grand Hall in the presence of its cast and crew, followed by three similarly successful screenings.

Aside from receiving a round of applause and a standing ovation after its premiere screening, XOFTEX has proven to be a critical hit, with the recently dropped first batch of reviews revealing a generally favorable reception for the surrealist refugee drama, with Deadline’s Damon Wise praising it for being “an unorthodox, often oblique, but emotionally powerful attempt to recreate onscreen the disorientation of the stateless mind.”

Laurence Boyce of Screen Daily also commended the film for its eccentric storytelling, saying that it “eschewed heavy realism and straight narrative, an approach with a desire to shake up the traditional ways of approaching these (refugee) narratives.”

Meanwhile, Susan Gottlieb of Cineurope had a similar sentiment, talking about how “It is hard to pin XOFTEX down or put it in a box, as it spends so much time trying to defy these definitions,” but giving kudos to Deshe “for trying to do something new with the topic and bringing the voices of those affected into the mix.”

Leonardo Azevedo of Séries do Momento also tipped his hat at Deshe for his “use of provocative and admittedly inscrutable esotericism — which is present throughout the film — [giving] the film its hypnotic power.”

XOFTEX follows Palestinian Syrian teenager Nasser and his older brother Yassin, who have been living in a Greek refugee camp, awaiting a decision on their asylum application. In the meantime, they pass the time by recording comedy sketches, fantasizing about making zombie films and moving to Sweden.

As the story unfolded, the film’s blend of realism, surrealism, and art-house experimentalism drew viewers into a world that resonated deeply with the current global refugee crisis.

XOFTEX is written, directed, shot, edited, scored, and produced by Deshe, who shares production credits with Andro Steinborn, Jordan Tappis, and Beau Willimon. It is also co-produced by Christophe Audeguis; executive-produced by Majd Hafiry, Osama Hafiry, Babak Jalali, Patrick Schorn, Grischa Sautter, Gabriel Stavenhagen, Zachary Guglin, Julian Chavez, Eve Gabereau, Maria Drandaki, and Didar Domehri.

The film stars first-time actor and rapper Abdulrahman Diab alongside actor and director Osama Hafiry. The cast is rounded out by Jalal Albaroudi, Hazem Saleh, Mouataz Alshaltouh, Mohamad Al Rashi, Amal Omran, Lujain Mustafa, Ramadan Hamoud, Mohammad Dibo, and Yasin El-Harouk.