Libyan Documentary My Father and Qaddafi Sets Its Sights on the 2027 Oscars

Jihan K's award-winning debut traces her father's disappearance and the hidden history of modern Libya, after nearly 90 festival screenings and 14 international awards

London, 29 October 2026 – My Father and Qaddafi, the debut feature documentary from filmmaker Jihan K, has reached a pivotal moment. After a world premiere at La Biennale di Venezia, the film has screened at almost 90 festivals across five continents and won 14 awards. Its team is now positioning it for the 2027 Academy Awards, both for Best Documentary Feature and as Libya's potential official entry for Best International Feature Film.

A Daughter's Search for the Truth

In 1993, Mansur Rashid Kikhia, a human rights lawyer, former Libyan foreign minister, UN ambassador and one of the most prominent opponents of Muammar Qaddafi's regime, vanished in Cairo. His daughter Jihan was six years old.

Nearly two decades later, she set out to reconstruct his life and the silence his absence left behind. Over close to ten years she interviewed more than 60 people, including relatives, friends, diplomats and elders, some of whom did not live to see the finished film. Their testimony, home videos and political archives combine into a story that is both personal and national.

At the centre of the film is also Jihan's mother, Baha Al Omary, a Syrian artist who campaigned publicly for answers while protecting her children. Her determination in the face of tribal politics and male-dominated diplomacy offers a powerful counterpoint to stereotypes of Arab women as passive figures.

Putting Libya Back on the Map

Libya has rarely had the chance to stand so prominently on the world's cinema stage. My Father and Qaddafi places its story within the wider sweep of Libyan history: Italian colonisation, the discovery of oil, repeated foreign intervention and Qaddafi's 42-year rule, whose personality cult blurred the nation's memory of life before him.

Kikhia's case also stands for thousands of enforced disappearances in Libya, where families are still waiting for closure. Jihan has described the project as a way of reclaiming Libyan identity from the narratives imposed by the West, by Qaddafi and even from within the country, and of rebuilding a bridge between generations in the spirit of oral tradition.

That mission came full circle when the film was selected for the Bayt Ali Gana Libyan Film Festival in Tripoli, bringing the story home to Libyan audiences.

A Journey Through the World's Cities

From Venice, the film travelled to Chicago, Florence and Rome, then to Doha for its Middle East and North Africa premiere. It has since screened in Marrakech, Copenhagen (CPH:DOX), Toronto (Hot Docs), Sydney, Gothenburg, The Hague, São Paulo, Beirut, Ramallah and Thiruvananthapuram at the International Film Festival of Kerala.

Awards and Recognition

Highlights include:

Best Documentary – Doha Film Festival, Qatar
Jury Prize – Marrakech International Film Festival, Morocco
Audience Award – CinemaMed, Brussels, Belgium
Valentina Pedicini Award – MedFilm Festival, Rome, Italy
Best International Documentary Feature – Carmel International Film Festival, USA
Best Feature Documentary – Prague Film Festival, Czech Republic
Jury Prize – Malmö Arab Film Festival, Sweden
Best Documentary – Annaba Mediterranean Film Festival, Algeria

The film was also nominated for the Golden Globes Impact Prize for Documentary (Artemis Rising Foundation, Venice) and the Gold Hugo for Best Documentary at the Chicago International Film Festival.

A Story of Hope

As the awards season approaches, My Father and Qaddafi offers audiences far beyond the Middle East a timely look at how dictatorships shape families, memory and identity, and leaves them with a sense of hope, human connection and shared history.

Pallavi Singal

Editor

Pallavi Singal is the Vice President of Content at ztudium, where she leads innovative content strategies and oversees the development of high-impact editorial initiatives. With a strong background in digital media and a passion for storytelling, Pallavi plays a pivotal role in scaling the content operations for ztudium's platforms, including Businessabc, Citiesabc, and IntelligentHQ, Wisdomia.ai, MStores, and many others. Her expertise spans content creation, SEO, and digital marketing, driving engagement and growth across multiple channels. Pallavi's work is characterised by a keen insight into emerging trends in business, technologies like AI, blockchain, metaverse and others, and society, making her a trusted voice in the industry.