Soles of Ethiopia

2010 – NPO Doc – 29 minutes

Soles of Ethiopia is a poetic documentary about shoes in Addis Ababa. The film zooms in on footwear; On those who polish, patch or worship shoes. By doing so it provides insight into the daily reality of the residents of the Ethiopian capital. It shows that their lives are not determined by the ‘Big Problems’ that dominate the media, such as war and hunger, but by personal choices. As a shoe factory owner says: “A man might choose to walk barefoot to spare his beautiful shoes.”  Who chooses cheap, who chooses comfort and who chooses class?


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credits

director
camera

fixer
research

music

sound mix
graphic design

Joost van der Wiel
Joost van der Wiel
Daphne Kuilman
Mikael Ayele
Blen Mandefro
Mattijs de Regt
Jorge San Martin Beuk
Wiebe de Boer
Bastiaan van Druten


awards

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