"They did nothing to help me make the film. They didn't believe in it," Mustafa, who has lived in Norway for 16 years, told TT.
His film is about Vyan, a young woman who is a sniper in the Peshmerga, the armed Kurdish forces fighting against IS. Vyan comes from Norway but has returned to Mosul when she learns that the little sister she thought was dead is alive and has been married off to an IS fighter.
Weeks of sniper training
Halkawt Mustafa has written the script and directed, with Avan Jamal, a Kurdish actor living in England, in the lead role.
"She went through weeks of sniper training, with real ammunition. It had to look real," Mustafa says.
For the sake of credibility, filming was done on location in Mosul.
It's all too common for films like this to be shot in Morocco or similar countries. I wanted authenticity, even though it could obviously be dangerous.
The film contains some violence, but not so much that it is forced on the viewer. The results of Vyan's very accurate shooting are mostly visible from a distance.
Is it an action movie? Well, I see it more as a drama.
Very disappointed
The film has thus been selected as Iraq's entry for the Oscar category for best international film. Halkawt Mustafa is naturally proud of that and of the film being shown at the Venice Film Festival, albeit out of competition. But he is very disappointed with the Norwegian Film Institute, which did not want to be involved when he applied for funding. He has paid for much of it himself.
They said it wasn't a Norwegian film and that they therefore didn't want to be involved. I have protested, I have written a letter to the Ministry of Culture and there will be a meeting when I get home.
The film will soon premiere in both Iraq and Norway, and Mustafa hopes that it will have a Swedish premiere at the Gothenburg Film Festival in January.
Facts: Halkawt Mustafa
Age: 41 years.
Lives: In Oslo.
Family: Wife.
Profession: Director, screenwriter.
Previous films: "Red heart", "The women Isis fears", "El clásico", "Hiding Saddam Hussein".
Current: With "No paradise if you are killed by a woman" which is being shown at the Venice Film Festival and is Iraq's Oscar submission.
