overblik
Recommended for ages 8 and up
Twelve-year-old Binti and her father, Jovial, are undocumented immigrants from the Congo, who have lived in Belgium since Binti was a baby. She dreams of living a normal life and aspires to be an online influencer, but their lives are upended when the refugee squat they are living in is raided by the Belgian police. While on the run, Binti discovers a secret treehouse where she meets Elias, who is working to save the okapi, the threatened “forest giraffe” native to the Congo. Elias is also struggling to come to terms with his parents’ divorce, his father’s new life in Brazil, and how to relate to his mother’s current suitor. Soon after Binti and Elias’s encounter in the woods, their parents meet, and Binti quickly realizes that a solution to her problems is right in front of her—all she needs to do is convince Elias’s mom and her dad to get married. Through poignant storytelling that all audiences will enjoy, this award-winning film explores weighty issues with humor, empathy, and love.