The Little Sister (2025 film)
2025 film by Hafsia Herzi
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The Little Sister (French: La Petite Dernière, lit. 'The Little Last One') is a 2025 coming-of-age drama film written and directed by Hafsia Herzi. It is an adaptation of Fatima Daas's 2020 autofiction novel The Last One. It follows Fatima (Nadia Melliti) a young lesbian descendant of Algerian immigrants in Paris, who struggles to balance the expectations of her Muslim family. The supporting cast includes Park Ji-min, Louis Memmi, Mouna Soualem, and several non-professional actors. The film is a co-production between France and Germany.[2]
| The Little Sister | |
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster | |
| French | La Petite Dernière |
| Literally | The Little Last One |
| Directed by | Hafsia Herzi |
| Screenplay by | Hafsia Herzi |
| Based on | The Last One by Fatima Daas |
| Produced by |
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| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Jérémie Attard |
| Edited by | Géraldine Mangenot |
| Music by | Amine Bouhafa |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by | Ad Vitam |
Release dates |
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Running time | 106 minutes[1] |
| Countries |
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| Language | French |
The film had its world premiere at the main competition of the 78th Cannes Film Festival on 16 May 2025, where it won the Queer Palm and the Best Actress prize. It was theatrically released in France on 22 October by Ad Vitam. It received seven nominations at the 51st César Awards, winning Best Female Revelation (for Nadia Melliti).
Synopsis
Fatima, 17, is the youngest of three daughters in a French-Algerian family. Wanting to find her own path in life, she begins university studies in Paris, where she embraces new experiences. She struggles to develop her identity and balance emerging desires, including her attraction to women, while also maintaining a sense of loyalty to her family.[3]
Cast
- Nadia Melliti as Fatima
- Park Ji-min as Ji-Na
- Amina Ben Mohamed as Kamar
- Rita Benmannana as Dounia
- Melissa Guers as Nour
- Razzak Ridha as Ahmed
- Louis Memmi as Benjamin
- Anouar Kardellas as Nacer
- Joven Etienne as Joven
- Waniss Chaouki as Tarik
- Madi Dembele as Madi
- Mahamadou Sacko as Rayan
- Ahmed Kheloufi as Adel
- Pascal Chanez as Professor Prévost
- Sophie Garagnon as Ingrid
- Julia Muller as Aurélia
- Nemo Schiffman as Yann
- Victorien Bonnet as Hugo
- Vincent Pasdermadjian as Vincent
- Gabriel Donzelli as Nino
- Mouna Soualem as Cassandra
- Jade Fehlmann as Jade
- Gioia Farisano as Gabrielle
- Julie Chaintron as high school teacher
- Ahmet Insel as university professor
- Abdelali Mamoun as Imam
- Claude-Emmanuelle Gajan-Maull as Claude DJ
Production
The Little Sister is Hafsia Herzi's third feature-length film, following her Critics' Week debut feature You Deserve a Lover (2019) and her Un Certain Regard prize-winner Good Mother (2021).[2] Herzi wrote the screenplay,[1] which she adapted from Fatima Daas's debut novel The Last One (French: La Petite Dernière), which follows the life of a young Muslim woman as she explores her sexuality, religion, and relationships while living in Clichy-sous-Bois, a suburb of Paris.[4] Daas described the novel as a work of autofiction as the life of the main character, who is also named Fatima Daas, parallels Daas' own.[5]
The film was produced by Julie Billy and Naomi Denamur for June Films, in co-production with Arte France Cinéma and Germany's Katuh Studio.[2]
Release
The Little Sister was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at the 78th Cannes Film Festival,[6][7] where it had its world premiere on 16 May 2025.[8]
International sales are handled by mk2 Films.[2] The film was theatrically released in France by Ad Vitam on 22 October 2025.[1]
Reception
Critical response
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 88% of 32 critics' reviews are positive.[9]
Accolades
| Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cannes Film Festival | 24 May 2025 | Palme d'Or | Hafsia Herzi | Nominated | [8] |
| Queer Palm | Won | [10] | |||
| Best Actress | Nadia Melliti | Won | [11] | ||
| César Awards | 26 February 2026 | Best Film | The Little Sister | Nominated | [12] |
| Best Director | Hafsia Herzi | Nominated | |||
| Best Supporting Actress | Park Ji-min | Nominated | |||
| Best Female Revelation | Nadia Melliti | Won | |||
| Best Adaptation | Hafsia Herzi | Nominated | |||
| Best Editing | Géraldine Mangenot | Nominated | |||
| Best Original Music | Amine Bouhafa | Nominated | |||
| Lumière Awards | 18 January 2026 | Best Female Revelation | Nadia Melliti | Won | [13] |
| Best Music | Amine Bouhafa | Nominated | [14] | ||
| Tromsø International Film Festival | 25 January 2026 | Faith in Film Special Mention | The Little Sister | Won | [15] |
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