back

Death of a Virgin, and the Sin of Not Living

Panorama 2021
© Bee on Set Productions
This morning, Etienne has to lie to his mother so that he can join three friends for a secret outing. They have pooled the money to pay for a sex worker and are about to have intercourse for the first time. Although the teenagers have to travel some way for their enterprise, there is no time to think about what they are going to do. Instead, they cover up their nervousness with non-stop bragging, joking and competitive arguments. Nobody in their radius is spared as the protagonists make casually insulting remarks about other people who cross their path. Although most of their quips go unchallenged, they do not remain entirely uninterrupted – for the film also reveals in voice-over monologues what is troubling the many secondary characters. Not only are their inner fears and longings disclosed, we are also told what fate has in store for them. And in this way, we learn more about the young men than they are willing to reveal to each other.
In his debut film, George Peter Barbari deconstructs the global myth that surrounds a masculine rite of passage. He has created a polyphonic film of formal clarity in which poetry and social reality painfully collide.
To view this content, you must enable third-party cookies. >
by George Peter Barbari
with Etienne Assal, Adnan Khabbaz, Jean Paul Frangieh, Elias Saad, Feyrouz Abi Hassan, Souraya Baghdadi Lebanon 2021 Arabic 86’ Colour

With

  • Etienne Assal (Etienne)
  • Adnan Khabbaz (Adnan)
  • Jean Paul Frangieh (Jean Paul)
  • Elias Saad (Dankoura)
  • Feyrouz Abi Hassan (Christelle)
  • Souraya Baghdadi (Patrona)

Crew

Written and Directed by George Peter Barbari
Cinematography Karim Ghorayeb
Editing George Peter Barbari
Music Fadi Tabbal
Sound Design Cedric Kayem
Sound Rawad Hobeika
Production Design Charbel Zgheib
Costumes Windy Ishaac
Make-Up Cerine Jaroudi
Assistant Director Mansour Zebian
Casting George Peter Barbari
Production Managers Sonia Habib, Yves Younes
Producers Christelle Younes, Reine Jihad Semaan, George Peter Barbari
Executive Producers Reine Jihad Semaan, Christelle Younes

Produced by

Bee on Set Productions

Berlinale Meets | Interview

George Peter Barbari

© Dany Faddoul

The Argentinian-Lebanese filmmaker was born in Orange County, California, USA in 1992 and grew up in Batroun, Lebanon. Death of a Virgin, and the Sin of Not Living is his debut feature film.

Filmography

2014 Wait; short documentary 2015 A Time in a Life; short film 2021 Death of a Virgin, and the Sin of Not Living

Bio- & filmography as of Berlinale 2021