Raised as the son her family never had, Sadije (13) dominates as the only female wrestler in her North Macedonian club. But over four transformative years, can she reclaim her stolen girlhood and build a life on her own terms?
SYNOPSIS
In Skopje’s working-class enclave of Gazi Baba, Sadije (13) is raised as a substitute son, tasked by tradition to provide for her household. Even as the only girl in her wrestling club, she rises to become the country's top champion. Yet beneath her success, she feels profoundly isolated, accepted in neither hyper-masculine sports nor quiet female spaces. Her world shatters when intense weight cuts cause her to faint at the European Championships, losing her title. Stripped of momentum, she hits rock bottom as her favorite coach quits and her club edges her out as puberty hits. Pushed to the brink of quitting, Sadije enters therapy with Meral, discovering self-worth beyond the mat. When state officials attempt to withhold her stipend, she confronts them directly. Meanwhile, newfound sisterhood in all-female camps offers fleeting sanctuary. She finally stops choosing between the son she was raised to be and the woman she is becoming. By 17, she uses her fluid identity to lift other isolated local girls through a radical act of care. But as she prepares to step into her destiny as the family's future matriarch, can she truly build a world on her own terms?
Director Statement
As a working class filmmaker without formal film school training, my creative practice has been forged from necessity rather than privilege. Raised in a household of men and often navigating hyper-masculine spaces as the lone girl on all boys sports teams, I learned early that belonging is rarely given, but must be claimed. For years, I existed as the perennial outsider, navigating the liminal space between being too feminine for some rooms and not feminine enough for others. It took a long time to retrieve my own womanhood, to make peace with the parts of myself I buried simply to survive. When I encountered Sadije’s story, I saw a kindred spirit: a young woman calculating the impossible mathematics of identity, weighing who she must be against who she might dare to become.
ABOUT FILMMAKER(S)
Pauline Blanchet
Pauline Blanchet is a French-British award-winning film director and producer whose work explores nationalism, identity, and belonging. Her short Zuckerberg You Owe/Own Me has screened internationally, and she has participated in CPH:DOX and Sheffield Doc Fest. Her feature in production Big in Gazi Baba, co-produced with Al Jazeera Balkans, has won multiple awards including the Cannes Marché du Film and EURODOC Award. Her feature in development What You Remember is supported by Sandbox Films, the Sundance Institute and was awarded the HotDocs First Look Prize. She runs Aral Sea Productions, developing work across documentary, animation, archive, and XR.
RELATED LINKS
PROMOTE THIS PROJECT
Put a donation widget on your site. Click here for code.
ABOUT YOUR DONATION
Women Make Movies (WMM), Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit media arts organization registered with the New York Charities Bureau of New York State and accepts charitable donations on behalf of this project. Your donation will be spent by the filmmaker(s) toward the production and completion of this media project. No services or goods are provided by Women Make Movies, the filmmaker(s) or anyone else associated with this project in exchange for your charitable donation.
Your contributions are tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law, and a confirmation of your donation will be sent via email. WMM will send you an acknowledgement letter in the mail to the address listed for tax purposes.
