The Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival will mark its 30th edition by opening with "Ulya," a Malaysian drama directed by Tam Suhaimi that first screened at the Cannes Film Festival. Organizers announced the selection on Monday, positioning the film as the centerpiece of a milestone year for the Estonian festival, which has grown from a modest regional showcase into one of Northern Europe's most closely watched industry events.
"Ulya" arrives at the festival's opening night with a cast led by Shaza Bae in the title role, alongside Hun Haqeem, Afiq Muiz, Fara Nadiah, Che Kem, Catriona Brian Ross, Nor Albaniah and Syazlin Zainal. The film's original language is English, and it carries a Hollywood industry designation under the festival's cataloging. It was released on January 1, 2022.
A Story of Transformation and Its Hidden Costs
The film follows Ulya, a young woman who endures relentless bullying during her school years. Her tormentors include Lin, the daughter of cosmetics entrepreneur Umi Yana, and Dini, the older brother of her closest friend, Hamdan. The cruelty is tied to her weight, and it shapes the person she becomes.
After her father dies, Ulya leaves for the United States to continue her education. It is there that her circumstances shift dramatically. She loses weight, reinvents herself, and builds a following of 80,000 people worldwide as a lifestyle and health influencer. To her audience, she is a success story - disciplined, aspirational and in control.
The reality is more complicated. Ulya lives with bulimia and panic attacks, conditions she believed she had under control but which continue to surface beneath the polished surface of her public persona. The gap between how her followers see her and what she privately endures forms the emotional spine of the narrative.
Returning Home, Reluctantly
Ulya's plans after graduating with her bachelor's degree involve pursuing graduate studies. Those plans are disrupted when she is compelled to return to Malaysia to help her mother sell the family house. The prospect unsettles her. She remembers her mother offering little attention to her or her younger sister, Najwa, and that memory makes the homecoming difficult to accept. She goes anyway.
The setup suggests a character study built around obligation and unresolved family history rather than a conventional redemption arc. Ulya's fame, such as it is, offers no protection from the past she left behind.
A Festival at a Crossroads
For Tallinn Black Nights, landing a Cannes-selected title for its opening slot signals an intent to balance international prestige with the kind of intimate, character-driven filmmaking the festival has historically championed. Reaching a 30th edition is no small feat for a festival that has weathered shifts in European funding, distribution and audience habits over three decades.
The choice of "Ulya" also puts a spotlight on Southeast Asian cinema within a Baltic context, a pairing that may introduce the film to viewers who missed its Cannes run. Director Tam Suhaimi is not a household name in Western markets, and the festival's platform could change that. The film's themes - body image, social media performance, mental illness and the weight of familial duty - travel well beyond national borders, which likely factored into its selection.
"Ulya" holds no TMDb rating as of this writing, a reflection of its limited exposure rather than any measure of quality. The festival's opening night will give it a larger stage and, presumably, a broader critical reception.
What Comes Next
The 30th anniversary edition of Tallinn Black Nights will unfold with "Ulya" as its first screening, setting a tone that mixes global festival pedigree with stories about interior lives under pressure. Whether the film finds distribution beyond the festival circuit remains to be seen. For now, its slot on opening night is both an honor and a test - of the festival's curatorial instincts and of a movie that asks audiences to look past the influencer's carefully constructed image to the struggle underneath.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
