The Perfect Candidate

Haifaa Al-Mansour - 2019 - Saudi Arabia / Germany - 101 min

Maryam is a doctor in a small Saudi-Arabian town. Despite being highly competent, she
continuously has to fight to earn the respect of her employees and patients. After
complaining about the conditions of the road leading up to her clinic, her demands are met
with disinterest by local officials. When Maryam’s attempt to visit a medical conference in
Dubai fails due to not having a male travel companion, she realizes that signing up as a
candidate for a local election will allow her to access through road blocks and also give her
some leverage to change road conditions. Maryam employs the help of her two sisters, one
of whom is a wedding videographer, to organise the launch her electoral campaign that will
challenge the patriarchal structure and social codes of Saudi Arabia. At every corner they are
met with the restrictions against women, but Maryam’s voice only gets louder, her steps
more courageous and her demands more radical.

As in her film Wadjda, Al-Mansour uses Maryam’s character to explore women’s rights in
Saudi Arabia through her lens. It’s an uplifting story of how a small act, can slowly but surely
affect change.

Director: Haifaa Al-Mansour

Haifaa Al Mansour is the first female filmmaker in Saudi Arabia. She studied comparative literature at the American University in Cairo. She is famous for penetrating the wall of silence surrounding the lives of Saudi women and providing a platform for their unheard voices.