Amine, an artist in Tunis, is in a creative low when he has to prepare for an exhibition of his paintings. In the street he meets the teenager Nidal and decides to follow him. Nidal lives in Essaïda, a district where émigrés from the countryside hope for work. Amine manages to persuade Nidal to pose for him. Nidal’s father is an alcoholic and mistreats his son. Amine is disgusted by Nidal’s home surroundings. When he gets home, he decides to start a new life in Essaïda, to capture the mood and the people in colour and light. In the meantime, circumstances force Nidal to turn to crime. The film was inspired by the Essaïda district of Tunis, where Mohamed Zran spent five years, having lived in Paris since he was fifteen.
