In many African communities, children are seen as life-givers, healers, and messengers of the ancestors. They bring out the positive values and spirit of the community. Not so in this film set in a village in Burkina Faso. In the opening scene of this parabolic drama, Miriam (Olga Toe) is being treated badly by her usually drunk husband of 20 years. He is angry because she spends time talking to other men and avoids him. When they go before the king to sort out their problems, a woman who is a stranger appears in the village. She gives birth to a daughter and dies. It turns out that the source of Miriam's complaint against her husband is that he is impotent and cannot give her a child. The king hands the newborn over to the couple and says that the child is a gift of God and the answer to their prayers. He names the baby Kounandi (Deborah Coty). She grows up to be a dwarf and, instead of being treated as a member of the community, suffers constant ridicule and the scorn of her father. Having had enough of the village, Miriam decides to leave with Kounandi. But her husband follows her and shoots her dead.

Kounandi finds a good friend in Karim (Noufou Quedraogo), a farmer who counsels her to be strong. He helps her build a little hut behind his own. It turns out that she is a fine cook and especially adept at making flat cakes in the pan that was her birth mother's only possession. Much to the delight of the villagers, she makes plenty of these cakes and is able to support herself. However, when Kounandi discovers that Karim has a wife he did not tell her about, she is quite distraught. Awa (Aminata Dao) has a bad heart and has been spending a lot of time with a healer. When she returns home, she is jealous of Kounandi's role in her husband's life.

Writer and director Apoline Traore has made a spare and simple parable about sacrificial love and the beauty of a giving and open heart. The tender finale provides an immensely appealing conclusion to this African tale.

Where and When?


Screened at the New Directors/New Films Festival, March/April 2004, New York City