Hope grows in the shadow of unspeakable atrocity in this new documentary.
How to watch Project Fiftyone in New Zealand
Project Fiftyone is screening in New Zealand cinemas from April 3, 2025.
What is Project Fiftyone about?
Directed by Gaylene Barnes, Saba Afrasyabi, and Bariz Shah, Project Fiftyone sees the latter two, a young Afghan-New Zealand couple, journey to their Taliban-controlled birth countryof Afghanistan. They have a simple plan: having raised NZ$20,000 through social media campaigning and crowdfunding, they will use that money to help inaugurate 51 micro-businesses in Kabul, the aim being to set up marginalised and disadvantaged Afghanis for the long term future.
This style of charity is a variation on microcredit, a well-established system of humanitarian aid that encourages entrepreneurship and helps alleviate endemic poverty by not just aiding individuals and families, but by increasing overall economic activity. Why 51? Well, that’s how many people were murdered by Australian terrorist Brenton Tarrant in the 2019 Christchurch mosque shootings. The horrible event spurred Afrasyabi and Shah to action, and this film documents their work, offering a glimmer of hope for the future.
The cast of Project Fiftyone
Saba Afrasyabi and Bariz Shah; various and sundry citizens of Kabul.
Project Fiftyone trailer
Why we’re excited about Project Fiftyone
Is excited the right word for a film tackling such a serious subject, even when its espoused aim is to draw something positive out of the horror of the Christchurch massacre? Frankly, it feels a little awkward even trying to frame it through a critical lens. We do appreciate this grassroots, verité approach to documentary filmmaking, though. Whether Project Fiftyone is “good” by any normal metric almost seems beside the point—this strikes us as a commendable effort to make a positive change in the world, and we could always use more of that.
