Africa

Struggling with life post-retirement, 68-year-old Meir (Meir Gerner) is shaken when he learns that for the first time in 30 years, he has not been asked to plan the traditional village ceremony. Adding further insult, the honor has been bestowed to the local teenagers. Sparking a crisis of epic proportions, Meir turns his attention to the building of a new wooden bed for his grandson in an attempt to restore his shaken sense of self. In this loose narrative, Meir becomes immersed in the rhythms of construction, and in long walks with his beloved dog, while becoming increasingly distant with his therapist wife Maya (Gerner's mother), his children, grandchildren and friends. Looking into the mirror at his expanding frame, the ex-soldier can barely contain his disappointment at a body that no longer obeys.

Through home movies of a holiday to Namibia (which are the actual films of the director and his family) we see a simpler time when Meir and his young family exist in perfect harmony with themselves and the nature that surrounds them. Director Oren Gerner blurs the lines between documentary and fiction in this gentle tribute to his family. Africa is a stunning, low-key debut about the anxiety of transition and the space in-between.

Preceded by the short film, Long Distance: Rachel is losing her sight to the point she can't even call her daughter who is in labor on the other side of the world.