The devastating Canadian family drama emerged as an under-the-radar sensation on the festival circuit last fall, and is now hitting theaters.

Nancy Paton, a producer and director based in Abu Dhabi, describes how the production landscape has changed drastically in the Mid East over the past decade — and why the current war threatens to upend that progress. 

Star Sheryl Lee Ralph says “people didn’t know if they wanted to touch this subject.” This led the filmmakers behind this wrenching drama to take matters into their own hands — and set a new model for indie distribution.