Focus Features will release Ben Sharrock’s two-time BAFTA nominated Limbo on Friday, April 30 in limited theaters.
The pic is a wry and poignant observation of the refugee experience, set on a fictional remote Scottish island where a group of new arrivals await the results of their asylum claims. It centers on Omar, a young Syrian musician who is burdened by his grandfather’s oud, which he has carried all the way from his homeland. Limbo received two BAFTA noms for Best British Film and Best Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer.
Sharrock spent time working for an NGO in refugee camps in southern Algeria and living in Damascus in 2009 shortly before the outbreak of the Syrian civil war. There, he formed a network of friends whose personal stories inspired the film he wrote and directed.
Limbo stars Amir El-Masry (The Night Manager), along with Vikash Bhai, Ola Orebiyi, Kwabena Ansah, Sidse Babett Knudsen and Kais Nashif (Tel Aviv on Fire). Producers are Irune Gurtubai and Angus Lamont.