It’s always exciting to go to the Nsija atelier. We grew up in Tunisia and speak Tunisian Arabic so our visits have an air of homecoming. The first thing that hits when we go inside is the percussive sound of the looms in action. Nsija has more than doubled its workforce since we started in 2018, so that music is louder now. The absolute coolest part of our job is working directly with the artists, artisans and weavers and seeing the whole process in real time: Deadstock yarn selection, loom set up and later adjustments, fine-tuning pilots, the final twist of a tassel and sewing of tags. The other cool part and a big perk of working in Mahdia is our constant proximity to the sea, where we take constant dips and put those fouta pilots to the test.
On our last two month visit to Tunisia, photographer and videographer Bechir Zayene joined us on our now very familiar 3 hour drive south from Tunis to Mahdia (where Zayene is from), and spent two days capturing everything we saw to tell the story of how your fouta makes its way to you. Our friend and music producer Marcelo Gerab completed the film with an original score built on the rhythm of the loom in action.
Filming & editing: tunis-based Bechir Zayene
Direction: Laura Taylor
Original soundtrack: São Paulo-based Marcelo Gerab of Bloco Studio
Driver: Lamia Hatira
Atelier: Nsija
