An Afghan rom-com from Hamburg

When Shahrbanoo Sadat began writing the script for "No Good Men" in 2020, she primarily wanted to tell the story of a woman who reminds her of her own story: living in Kabul, part of the middle class, employed, financially independent and with her own voice. A voice, however, that is jeopardised as soon as it is directed against state institutions and authorities.

This is how the protagonist Naru (played by Shahrbanoo Sadat), the only Director of Photography at the "TV Kabul" channel, came about. With Naru, Sadat portrays one of the comparatively privileged women in Afghan society, shortly before the Taliban seized power: she lives in the capital, has a job and her own money. And yet the structural disadvantages as a woman are clearly noticeable - be it in the fight for custody of her child, in her relationship with her ex-husband or in her everyday working life, in which her professionalism is repeatedly called into question. So it's no wonder that Naru has lost faith in good men. However, she is forced to question this belief when she meets the journalist Qodrat (played by Anwar Hashimi).

"I'm actually talking about the patriarchy"

After Sadat initially hesitated to deal with women on film - not least because of numerous corrupted projects about women in Afghanistan - she finally came to a clear realisation: "This is my subject. I am a woman and I have every right to write about it. So I'm making a film about women."

In the early stages of the script, however, she found it difficult to capture the essence. "I could have explained the story in five minutes, but not succinctly. It took three years and several versions of the script for me to realise: I'm actually talking about patriarchy."

With the Taliban coming to power in 2021, Sadat observed an increasing romanticisation of Afghanistan's democratic era and wanted to consciously counteract this: "I don't deny that the Taliban are the biggest problem in Afghanistan today. But patriarchy is the core of the Taliban mentality - and it existed long before them."

An Afghan rom-com

For her research, Sadat accompanied Afghan journalists at work every day for a month - just a few months before the Taliban returned. It was a difficult time during which she had to learn to maintain emotional distance.

"I have never cried as much in my life as I did during the development of this project," she says. Confronted with the tragic realities of life, she finally asked herself how she could make these difficult topics accessible and tangible for an international audience.

Sadat knew that "No Good Men" was to be a romantic comedy - even if many considered the genre inappropriate and had other expectations of it - the political reality of the country and the social challenges that Naru experiences as a woman flow directly into the story. For some, this goes beyond the classic idea of a rom-com, but for Sadat, the film is exactly that: "I can always say it's an Afghan rom-com because nobody knows what an Afghan rom-com is. There's never been anything like it!"

Sadat as Actress and Directors

The role of Naru is played by Sadat herself - an initially unintentional acting debut: "There is a reason why I am a Director and prefer to be behind the camera." Her work as a Director helped her to accept herself as an actress and to convince herself of her abilities.

And yet doubts arose from time to time. According to Sadat, the patriarchal system had shaped her beliefs. "Make yourself small, stay invisible, don't be too much". Added to this was the pressure of constantly having to prove herself and seek external validation. The embodiment of Naru had a kind of therapeutic effect on her: "I see myself for the first time. I see this woman and she is not perfect - but she is perfect in her imperfections. She is enough."

Production in Hamburg

Making the film entirely in Germany was a real challenge for Sadat - but one that she was happy to take on: "We have this highly professional crew from Germany and we have my eyes. And the eyes of Anwar Hashimi, who simply has the best eyes," says Sadat and laughs. They were looking for Soviet architecture, which can also be found in Afghanistan. They found what they were looking for in a residential neighbourhood in the Billstedt district of Hamburg. Some of the eight days of filming in the Hanseatic city took place there. For the Valentine's Day scene, a small Kabul market was set up on just 20 square metres and staffed with 20 extras. With Billstedt as the filming location, the local Afghan community also brought its own flavour to the scenes.

Executive Producer of the film is Katja Adomeit from Lübeck. The duo already worked together successfully on Sadat's previous films "Wolf and Sheep" (2016) and "The Orphanage" (2019). "No Good Men" is the third part of the planned five-part film series. "With 'No Good Men' you see the end of the story. I'm travelling back in time for the next parts," Sadat reveals, arousing curiosity about what's to come.