Skateboarding Is Not for Girls

In this enthralling portrait of a new generation of young women coming of age amidst two worlds, the antiquated patriarchal custom of arranged marriage threatens to separate sisters Adela and Zara.

In Skopje, Northern Macedonia, 11-year-old Adela (Efkjar Abaz) and her older sister Zara (Džefrina Jašari) share a deep bond shaped by navigating two contradictory worlds. At school, they are typical, rebellious teens with skateboards, social media, crop tops, and boyfriends. After school, in a quiet and disciplined mode, they help their mother with cleaning jobs to make ends meet. Already barely scraping by in their Romani neighborhood, the family is pushed even further when it becomes clear their father has abandoned them. With options dwindling, their mother turns to her older, more traditionally minded sister-in-law, who proposes they take Zara to the Bulgarian Bridal Market and marry her off for a fee. Refusing to accept she could lose her sister to this antiquated custom, Adela becomes determined to find another way.

Drawing on personal observation, Macedonian filmmaker Dina Duma follows her award-winning debut Sisterhood with this enthralling and rarified look at a new generation of young women coming of age amidst two worlds. Anchored by compelling, naturalistic performances and a profound sensitivity, Duma presents an alternative to the common depictions of non-Western girlhood. What emerges is a tender portrait of resilience, an exuberant joy found in the fleeting freedoms of Skopje’s skateparks, and an invulnerable strength found in the alliances of girlfriends, sisters and mothers.—Malin Kan