Midwives is a film based on what the director Léa Fehner experienced 12 years ago when giving birth to her son. It starts from her awareness of the poor working conditions of midwives during that time. Sofia and Louise are overwhelmed by the demanding hospital system as interns in a maternity ward. The reality they face includes excessive workload, shortage of staff, and no time to adapt to overtime. One midwife has to take care of three mothers, and they find themselves caught up in the busy daily routine. However, at the same time, they experience the gratification and joy that can only be found in the profession of midwives through conversations with colleagues, holding newborn babies, and seeing the smiles on parents' faces while holding their babies.
Most of the actors in the film, including the two main characters, Sofia and Louise, were cast through workshops. Khadija Kouyaté, who plays Sofia, delivers an astonishingly delicate performance, portraying the extreme anxiety experienced in the labor environment where birth and death intersect. The director obtained the experiences of several midwives during the pandemic and incorporated natural birth scenes with parents' permission, making the film realistic and close to a documentary in its depiction of labor. Midwives is not only a film about labor but also a film about the spaces where most of us are born in this world. [LEE Suyoung, Cinefemme]