Germany, Italy / 2023 / 16mins / Drama, Sci-fi / English, Italian, Yoruba

Mångata is a reflection of the Moon’s light on a water surface which indicates the way to the Moon. This light also helps to rescue little Alya. She is the only one saved from a refugee boat that sunk in the Mediterranean. Many years later, as an astronaut on a pioneering mission, she will need this light again. Maja Costa takes the refugee subject, usually shown as a drama or bitter tragedy, into new territories. Under the attractive guise of science fiction she may concentrate not on what is going on nowadays but look into the future with hope and optimism challenging prejudice and stereotypes.

Maja Costa is a multilingual screenwriter/director. After studying Cello at the Milan Conservatory and getting an MA in ANES/Egyptology, she studied screenwriting and directing at the German Film and TV Academy in Berlin (dffb) and attended Serial Eyes as a scholarship holder from SKY Italia. She is currently developing original series for different production companies and broadcasters and adapting the novel “E.E.” by Nobel Prize laureate Olga Tokarczuk into a feature film. Her award-winning short film Mångata (2023) has been granted production aid by the European Space Agency and has been screened at more than 50 film festivals worldwide. Learn More