This beautifully filmed documentary was shot in Niger, in the barren landscape of the desert, where a nomadic tribe, the Tuareg, maintain a traditional lifestyle. A charismatic teenager, Rhaissa, is about to marry a man she has never met, but learns from her girlfriend Fatima that her husband-to-be is not very handsome or proud. Rhaissa only giggles, resigned to her fate. Her parents have accepted the proposal and the unspoken tribal rules must be followed.

The marriage ritual demands that Rhaissa spend the week before her marriage in a wedding tent, where she cannot speak to anyone or leave its confines. As friends rub potions into her skin and brush her hair in preparation for the big event, the struggles to be so confined.

Outside the tent, the wedding celebration begins as villages arrive on camels loaded with gifts. Despite some of her friends’ rebellion against these tribal ways and interest in choosing their own mates, Rhaissa remains a dutiful Tuareg, willing to first meet her husband on the wedding night. This warm, intimate film allows a glimpse into a history-steeped tradition.

"The film provides an intimate portrait of the young protagonist, and teen viewers will be able to relate to the events as they unfold despite the vast differences between the Tuareg community and daily life for Westerners. Patient viewers will be rewarded by this striking portrait of the Tuareg people."
‒Meghann R. Matwichuk, University of Delaware, School Library Journal

International Documentary Film Festival, Amsterdam, 2005
Thessaloniki International Film Festival, 2006
Grand Prix, Audiovisual de la SCAM, 2006
International Film Festival Cinema Africano, Milan, 2005
African Studies Association, 2007