Independent filmmaker Haile Gerima, the writer/director/producer behind TEZA, ADWA, SANKOFA & BUSH MAMA, discusses his new film, YETUT LIJ ("Child of the Breast"), and the campaign that he's launching on Indiegogo to raise funds for production.
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YETUT LIJ is an Amharic phrase, that crudely translates to "Child of the Breast." The term is typically used to refer to a child taken in and raised by someone, other than their own parent.
The story takes place in 1960βs Ethiopia, 20 years after the Italian occupation. Aynalem, a 13-year-old peasant girl, gets adopted by a wealthy judge's family and taken away from her own, with the promise of an educated upbringing and a better life. Contrary to this promise, she is instead forced to work as a domestic servant. Yet, despite the close watch and cruelty of her employers, she meets and falls in love with an ordinary police man, named Tilahun. Though, he manages to help her escape her circumstances, Tilahun finds Aynalem years later, in the clutches of another formidable captor.
