From debut Iraqi director Hasan Hadi, The President’s Cake is a poignant story of love, friendship and resilience told through the eyes of a child growing up under Saddam Hussein’s oppressive regime. It was the first Iraqi film to feature at the Cannes Film Festival, premiering in Directors’ Fortnight and winning both the section’s Audience Award and the festival’s prestigious Camera d’Or.
As many states in the Middle East continue to prioritise internal control and regime durability, The President’s Cake shows how power is sustained not only through coercion, but also through everyday social practices that shape behaviour and reinforce compliance. These dynamics remain central to understanding current political trajectories, state–society relations, and the prospects for meaningful reform.
A panel discussion following the screening, featuring the director and leading Iraq experts, will explore these themes in greater depth – drawing lessons from Iraq’s experience on authoritarian resilience, social cohesion, and the long-term legacies of political control.
Click here for The President’s Cake official trailer.
The event will be followed by a drinks reception for guests.
