Women at the center of Oscar-nominated Yemeni Scottish director Sara Ishaq's film, 'The Station,' hail from a conflict-ridden country. The narrative is driven by kinship and survival.

In the heart of Yemen, a women-only gas station became a beacon of hope and resilience during the country's tumultuous times. This unique gathering place, discovered by Yemeni-Scottish filmmaker Sara Ishaq in 2015, served as the inspiration for her upcoming feature-length film, "The Station."

Ishaq, who was Oscar-nominated in 2012 for her short documentary "Karama Has No Walls," initially planned to make a documentary about the gas station. However, practical obstacles such as danger due to fighting and reluctance of Yemenis to appear on camera led her to a different path.

The story of "The Station" reflects the gradual unraveling of the social fabric in Yemen, fractured by war, foreign invasions, and internal political strife. Ishaq's creative vision refracts this shared history into an absurd, sometimes exaggerated parallel world, setting the film in a speculative space that functions as a microcosm of Yemeni society but unbound by a specific time or place.

"The Station" is written by Ishaq and her collaborator Nadia Eliewat, and follows Layal, a young woman confronted with her 12-year-old brother's growing desire to break free and become a man. The film is produced by Screen Project and Georges Film, among others, and the organisation credited as the producer is Majdal.

Ishaq returned to Yemen in 2011, during the Arab Spring, to make films. Born and raised in Yemen but living in Scotland since the age of 17, Ishaq found herself struggling to make sense of the material she collected as the news portrayed a very different image of Yemen. It took approximately eight years for Ishaq to transform her experiences into a feature-length script for "The Station."

The women at the gas station shared resources, taught their children, and exchanged stories while queuing for scarce fuel, creating a lively and communal atmosphere. The women were running households and generating income for their families amidst men being laid off or drawn to the fighting. This vibrant community serves as a backdrop for the film, which is centred on the gas station in a segregated, war-torn town.

"The Station" is not primarily about politics but focuses on people, their relationships, contradictions, and resilience. It serves as an ode to the people of Yemen who have endured years of war with dignity, humor, and strength.

In a recent development, Film Clinic has acquired MENA distribution rights for "The Station." Ishaq is currently in post-production on her fiction feature debut, and audiences can look forward to experiencing this powerful tale when it is released.