The Fruitless Tree

There is certainly some pressure to procreate in Western societies but in some countries its not even a question of choice Married but childless director Aicha Mackys circumstance is judged unacceptable in her native Niger Doctors havent been able to determine why she cant conceive but in her conservative Muslim society women are always getting blamed for infertility while men are rarely diagnosed Speaking to her departed mother who died in childbirth she expresses her deep sadness By giving life you lost yours whereas Im dying a slow death by not being able to give life Drawing from her personal experience Macky bravely addresses the taboo of childlessness and the stigma Nigerien women like her must endure Through delicate exquisitely shot portraits and sensitive observation of other womens secret suffering she finds a way to affirm herself as a fulfilled individual among mothers