A  minority Canadian coproduction is among the seven fiction and documentary projects selected for the Final Cut in Venice program.

The three-day industry program — which will take place from Sept. 3 to 5 — is run through the Venice International Film Festival’s annual Venice Production Bridge initiative. It allows producers of films from select African and Middle Eastern countries that are still in production to present their projects to buyers, distributors, post-production companies and programmers, as well as receive cash or in-kind post-production support.

One of the four fiction titles selected is French filmmaker Zaven Najjar’s animated feature Allah n’est pas obligé (Allah is Not Obliged). Montreal prodco Yzanakio is among the producers alongside France’s Special Touch Studios, Luxembourg’s Paul Thiltges Distributions, and Belgium’s Lunanime and Need Productions.

The feature is directed by Najjar, who co-wrote the script with Karine Winczura. It is based on the novel of the same name by the late African author Ahmadou Kourouma, and follows the journey of a young boy from the Ivory Coast who is thrust into a civil war.

Both Telefilm Canada and SODEC have provided financial support for the copro, with Maison 4:3 attached as a distributor and TV5 Monde as a broadcaster.

The additional three fiction features selected are: Jason Jacobs and Devon Delmar’s Carissa (South Africa), Scandar Copti’s Happy Holidays (Palestine, Germany, France, Qatar, Italy), and Life is a Railroad (Democratic Republic of the Congo, France, Germany), directed by Kevin Mavakala, Manassé Kashala, Tousmy Kilo and Isaac Sahani.

The three documentary projects selected include Hind Meddeb’s Sudan, When Poems Fall Apart (France, Tunisia), Hussein Al-Asadi’s She Was Not Alone (Iraq, Saudi Arabia), and Rama Thiaw’s Zion Music (Senegal, Ivory Coast, Germany).

The 80th Venice International Film Festival runs from Aug. 30 to Sept. 9.

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