Hiam Abbass Sets Talal Selhami’s ‘Shelter’ from Lamia Chraibi’s La Prod

The often superb Hiam Abbass, a star in ‘Succession,” “Lemon Tree” and “The State,” is set to play lead Leila in on-the-rise Moroccan genre pioneer Talal Selhami’s “The Shelter” (“Le Refuge”), which is set up at Morocco’s La Prod, headed by Lamia Chraibi, doyenne of Moroccan film producers.

Selhami’s most ambitious movie to date, and an arresting attempt to picture literally the lifelong mental trauma of war filtered through the prism of a horror movie, “The Shelter” was already being talked up as one of the buzz movies to be pitched at Fantasia’s Frontières International Co-Production Market, running July 23-26.

Abbass’ coup casting now catapults “The Shelter,” a psychological horror movie, into the zone of must-check-out titles at Frontières’ event, one of the world’s key genre emporiums.

Abbass will play Leila, a former concert pianist from Syrian city Aleppo, which bore much of the brunt of the ghastly Syrian Civil War (2011-24). Now living in exile in Paris, she works as a caregiver for Georges, a diplomat nearing the end of his life.

“Within the confines of his opulent apartment, filled with relics of colonial memory, Leila begins to experience ghostly visitations from her late husband and son,” “The Shelter’s” synopsis runs. “At first tender, these apparitions gradually take on a sinister form, blurring the lines between trauma and madness, memory and haunting. As the echo of distant bombs returns, the walls between Georges’s apartment and Leila’s lost home begin to collapse.”

Born in Nazareth, Israel to a family of Israeli Arabs of Palestinian descent, Abbass can bring to the role a deep connection and commitment.

“When I read Talal’s script for Le Refuge/The Shelter, I was moved by its poignant portrayal of trauma, grief, and what is means to be exiled. It’s a raw, human, and deeply universal story. One that is sadly lived by many,” she told Variety.

“The psychological intensity of the film pushes its characters to the edge of their humanity, navigating a visceral type of horror. It’s not just a story of survival, it’s an immersion into the darkest corners of the tormented human psyche.

Talal’s cinematic universe is unique. Highly technical, but also deeply attuned to human emotion and dramaturgy. 

I believe he’s part of this new wave of filmmakers who carry a bold, distinct voice, one that can resonate far beyond borders. 

I’m genuinely excited to collaborate with him, and I feel this project holds the potential to leave a meaningful mark on the global stage.”

Presented at Cannes’ Fantastic 7 and the Marrakech Film Festival’s Atlas Workshops, “The Shelter” is “a deeply atmospheric film that blends personal trauma with collective memory,” said producer Sophia Menni at La Prod. “The film draws from both genre cinema and tragic events to create a world where silence haunts more than ghosts. We aim to craft a story that is at once intimate and terrifying, where horror is inherited, not just imagined.”

Selhami’s second feature, 2019 fantasy horror film “Achoura,” a pioneering Moroccan creature feature inspired by the country’s folklore, won a Special Jury Mention at Sitges. 

La Prod has produced many of a new generation of directors galvanizing Moroccan cinema since the mid 2000s: Narjiss Nejjar (“Apatride”), Hicham Lasri (“Jahilya,” “Thank You Satan”) and Selhami (“Achoura”). It also co-produced cannes Critics’ Week Grand Prize laureate “Mimosas” from Oliver Laxe, a Cannes 2025 Jury Prize winner for “Sirat.”