The Sardines

A scientific expedition is set to take off in six days and Zouzou still hasn’t said anything to her family. As she waits for her visa to be approved, her mum harangs her about being single and fusses over her sister’s wedding preparations. Zouzou’s secret worries her best friend Warda, who advises her to see a hairdresser.

After her family invade her room, Zouzou leaves the house to see Nadia, the hairdresser. In an attempt to confront her fears, she realises the secret of her departure weighs even more heavily on her, especially because Warda’s visa was refused. So Zouzou tries to avoid Warda.

After a tense therapy session at Nadia’s hair salon is interrupted by a power cut, Zouzou storms home and runs into Warda, who is desperate to confront her. With three days to go, will Zouzou finally muster up the courage to face her family and leave for the scientific expedition?

As each day passes, everyone in Zouzou’s household becomes more and more tense. Her mother is overwhelmed, her father is distant and her sister is stressed about her wedding day. Zouzou goes to Nadia to get away from it all and ends up making a confession.

After an argument with Warda at the beach and an unsuccessful attempt to confide in her mum, Zouzou decides to do something radical – cut her hair. She is determined to leave, but when she gets home, she realises her family has uncovered the secret she has been keeping from them. Her departure may now be in jeopardy.

Now that the cat’s out of the bag, Zouzou tries to convince her family that her departure is for the best. She confronts them at her sister’s wedding and pushes her parents to give in, despite their fears of her being alone for a year on a “boat full of men”. Will Zouzou manage to leave Oran?