The President’s Cake(Mamlaket al-Qasab) Sydney Film Festival
8 June 2025
In the Playhouse
Cinema
Iraq | 2025 | Arabic | Drama | U15+
A rare film from Iraq, this Cannes Director’s Fortnight selected charmer is a humorous and touching debut about a young girl’s daring quest to bake a cake in the time of Saddam Hussein.
| Date | Time |
| Sunday 8 June 2025 | 2:45pm |
| Ticket | Price |
| Standard | $26 |
| Concession | $22 |
| Seniors | $22 |
| Youth (17 and Under) | $20 |
Prices correct at the time of publication and subject to change without notice. Exact prices will be displayed with seat selection.
The only authorised ticket agencies for this event is Sydney Opera House and Sydney Film Festival. Sydney Film Festival Flexipasses are only accepted on the Sydney Film Festival website, and must be redeemed before 12pm the day prior to the session. To purchase tickets with your Sydney Film Festival Flexipass, please visit here.
For more information about Authorised Agencies, see the frequently asked questions below.
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Wheelchair accessible:
There are a number of wheelchair and companion seating locations in our theatres. To book accessible seating contact Box Office:
Telephone
+61 2 9250 7777
(Monday to Friday, 9am-5pm AEST)
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Run time
The total duration of this film is approximately 103 minutes.
Event duration is a guide only and may be subject to change.
The advertised start time is the introduction start time. Venue doors will open approximately 15 minutes before the advertised start time.
Age
This event is Unclassified (15+).
Children aged 15 years and under must be accompanied at all times.
The Opera House is committed to the safety and wellbeing of children that visit or engage with us. Read our Child Safety Policy.
A birthday cake in the time of Saddam Hussein
It’s 1990 and Iraq, under the iron fist of Saddam Hussein, is suffering under sanctions. Extreme poverty is on the rise; there are shortages of medicine and food. Despite the circumstances, it’s still required that all Iraqis celebrate the president’s birthday, or face the consequences. An unlucky classroom draw finds nine-year-old Lamia given the unenviable task of baking the birthday cake for her class. Accompanied by grandmother, Lamia departs her home in the marshes for the big city, to procure the ingredients for the dreaded cake – a task that takes on unexpectedly grave importance. Beautifully shot and acted, and with a keen sense of time and place The President’s Cake makes for an exhilarating adventure.
Presented by Sydney Opera House and Sydney Film Festival
Credits
Hasan Hadi
Director
Leah Chen Baker
Producer
Hasan Hadi
Screenwriter
Tudor Vladimir Panduru
Cinematographer
Andu Radu
Editor
Films Boutique
World Sales
Cast
Banin Ahmad Nayef
Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rahim Alhaj
Sydney Film Festival
Sydney’s biggest celebration of cinema comes to Sydney’s most iconic cultural venue, with a diverse and exciting lineup of premieres from Australia and around the world, featuring director Q&A’s at select sessions. Some stories are too big for the small screen – see the bigger picture at Sydney Film Festival.
Plan your visit
Venue information
Our foyers will be open 90 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and two hours pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances. Refreshments will be available for purchase from our theatre bars.
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Getting here
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Frequently asked questions
Ticket purchases and collection at our Box Office is discouraged and eTicket or postal delivery methods should be used, wherever possible. However, if you are collecting your tickets from the Box Office, we recommend doing this at least 60 minutes before the event starts. If you have already received your tickets, the venue doors will be open 45 minutes pre-show for Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and 30 minutes pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances. Please take your seats as soon as you arrive.
If you are late, we will seat you as soon as we can and, where possible, in your allocated seat. However, to reduce movement in the venue as well as minimise disruption to the performance and other patrons, ticketholders may be seated in an allocated latecomer’s seat. Please be aware that some events have lock-out periods. In these cases, latecomers will be admitted at a suitable break in the performance. On occasions, this may not be until the interval, or at all where there is no interval.
Details of our right to refuse admission can be found in our General Terms and Conditions for Tickets and Events.
In accordance with our venue security procedures, Opera House security will be scanning and checking bags under the Monumental Stairs, prior to entering the building. Bags will be scanned by an x-ray machine, and staff will wear appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) when handling your belongings, such as gloves. Cloaking facilities will be open 60 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and 60 minutes pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances. However it is strongly encouraged that you travel lightly to minimise contact and queuing. Any bags larger than an A4 piece of paper will need to be checked into the Cloak Room.
The authorised agency for this event is the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Film Festival.
Only tickets purchased by authorised agencies should be considered reliable. If you purchase tickets from a non-authorised agency such as Ticketmaster Resale, Viagogo, Ticketbis, eBay, Gumtree, Tickets Australia or any other unauthorised seller, you risk that these tickets are fake, void or have previously been cancelled. Resale restriction applies. For more details, please refer to our General Terms and Conditions for Tickets and Attendance at Events.
Please contact Box Office on +61 2 9250 7777 as soon as possible to advise if you can no longer attend.
Foyers will be open 90 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and two hours pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances. Refreshments will be available for purchase from our theatre bars.
The venue doors will be open 45 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and 30 minutes pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances.
Please bring a credit or debit card for any on site purchases to enable contactless payment. You’re welcome to bring your own water bottle but no other food and drinks are permitted inside our venues.
The health, safety and wellbeing of everyone at the Sydney Opera House is our top priority. In line with this commitment, the Opera House became a smoke-free site in January 2022. Read our Smoke-free Environment Policy.
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