Me, Mahmoud and the Mint Plant
While working in war-torn Mosul, Iraq, in 2017, Canadian nurse Trish Newport developed an unlikely friendship with Mahmoud – a local man who carried a mint plant with him wherever he went.
Interview with Writer/Director Cat Mills
Watch Me, Mahmoud and the Mint Plant here:
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
A friend had told me this story as she knew Trish, our main character. I fell in love with the mystery behind Mahmoud and his mint plant - as well as the simple solution: that he carried the mint plant through a war zone due to a promise he made to his daughter. It was so touching and sweet and I felt it should be shared with the world
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
You should watch this film if you are becoming cynical and would like to be reminded of the power of small promises.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
I love stories about strangers connecting, as well as stories about kindness. There is so much bad news out in the world that I feel that being shown sweet and simple stories can help bring us back to a more optimistic headspace.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
We based the script on the article that Trish wrote for MSF about how she met Mahmoud and how his promise to his daughter helped keep her grounded in a war zone. The story was elaborated slightly through interviews with Trish.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
So far people have loved the film. Strangers have written to me, telling me about how the film has made them tear up. We're really pleased that the film has had such a positive impact.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
I'm happy the story has resonated with people.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
We would love to have a large festival run and share this sweet story about a father's love for his daughter to a wider, global audience.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Film Festival directors.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
We would love for people to be inspired and to tell their friends and family that they love them.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
How do you stay grounded during times of crisis?
Would you like to add anything else?
Nope - thanks for supporting the film!
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
We just finished a new short film for Al Jazeera Witness called The Billboard Squad: Dave Meslin, a 47-year-old Canadian activist, is known for his campaigns to defend public space from commercial interests. For 15 years, he has been lobbying Toronto to remove illegal billboards from neighbourhoods across the city.
You can check it out on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zcTCBMgBY0&t=1s
Interview: July 2022
We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
Me, Mahmoud and the Mint Plant
Length:
5:32
Writer/Director
CAT MILLS is an award-winning filmmaker with a passion for the unconventional.
She is a graduate of the University of British Columbia, holding a BFA in Film Production, and is a fellow of the CFTPA Producers Internships program, the documentary Channel Doc Accelerator Program and the DOC Breakthrough Program.
Cat's 2016 film about the Toronto Repair Cafe, FIXED!, won first place in the 2016 Hot Docs Short Film Pitch competition and has been winning awards on the festival circuit. Her 2017 film BIG MEN, SMALL DOGS (CBC Short Docs) went viral with over a million views in the first few weeks of its release.
Producer
Felicity Justrabo is a Toronto-based documentary film producer. She is the producer of five short films for CBC’s Short Docs, including the award-winning viral hit Finding Fukue. She is also the associate producer for the one-hour human rights documentary In Search of a Perfect World (CBC) and the feature films Coppers (TVO, TIFF 2019) and Borealis (NFB/TVO).
Felicity has also worked on several feature documentaries as a production coordinator, including Rob Stewart’s final film Sharkwater Extinction (2018, TIFF 2018) and Peter Jackson’s documentary debut They Shall Not Grow Old (2018). Currently, she is producing the CBC docuseries Writing the Land and the feature film The Yes Men Build a Wall.
Key cast:
Trish Newport
Looking for:
film festival directors
https://twitter.com/catstercat
Hashtags used:
#CBCShortDocs
Where can I watch it now?
Melbourne Documentary Film Festival 2022