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Ali Cherri
"The Watchman" followed by "The Sentinel"
18.11.2026
The French Academy in Rome—Villa Medici is pleased to present The Watchman and The Sentinel for the first time in Rome. These two films by director and artist Ali Cherri will be screened as part of his residency at the Villa Medici. The screening will be followed by a talk with Ali Cherri, moderated by Matteo Lucchetti, an independent curator, art historian, and writer.
The director’s latest film, The Sentinel, was screened at the Critics’ Week section of this year’s Cannes Film Festival. Two years earlier, The Watchman, the first instalment exploring the figure of the soldier, was selected for the Tiger Short category at the Rotterdam International Film Festival.
In Italy, the work of Ali Cherri, who is also a sculptor, was recently showcased in the exhibition Dreamless Night at the GAMec – Galleria d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea di Bergamo, organised by the In Between Art Film Foundation and the Frac Betagne. Ali Cherri won the Silver Lion at the Venice Art Biennale in 2022.
Synopsis
The Watchman, Ali Cherri
26’, 2024
Original version with English subtitlesA young Turkish Cypriot soldier tasked with protecting the border witnesses strange phenomena every night, which intensify his fear of a potential imminent attack.
In 2024 “The Watchman” has been selected for the Tiger Short category at the Rotterdam International Film Festival.
The Sentinel, Ali Cherri
29’, 2026
Original version with English subtitlesJuly 14, National Day. In a barracks governed by military rituals, Sergeant Lafleur seems crushed by the silent weight of duty. A doctor grants him one night of freedom, on the condition that he return before dawn. Thus begins a nocturnal wander through a world that gradually slips away from reality. A night suspended between destiny and abandonment.
Ali Cherri’s latest film, “The Sentinel” has been presented at the Critics’ Week section of the Cannes Film Festival in 2026.
The Watchman, Ali Cherri
The Watchman, Ali Cherri
The Watchman, Ali Cherri
The Sentinel, Ali Cherri
The Sentinel, Ali Cherri
Practical Information
Thursday, November 18, 2026
Screening from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Followed by a talk with Ali Cherri, moderated by Matteo Lucchetti
Michel Piccoli Cinema, Villa Medici
€5 (tickets coming soon)
Ali Cherri
Ali Cherri (1976, Lebanon) is a Beirut-born filmmaker and sculptor based in Paris. His work is exhibited in major museums around the world. In 2022, he was awarded the Silver Lion at the Venice Art Biennale. The same year, his first feature film, Le Barrage, was presented at Cannes as part of the Quinzaine des cinéastes. He then directed the short films Le Guetteur, selected for the Rotterdam Festival in 2024, and La Sentinelle, presented at the Cannes Critics’ Week in 2026.
Matteo Lucchetti
Matteo Lucchetti is an independent curator, art historian, and writer. Since 2011, he has been co-curator of the exhibition *Visible*. He is also a guest curator for the project “Pompeii Commitment. Archaeological Matters.”
