Empire of the Rabbits

Musa lives with his father, Beko, in rural Turkey. Beko, struggling to make ends meet by assisting in rabbit-hound races, is lured by the promise of a government disability pension for Musa if he can prove his son's “disability” with a medical report. To pass as disabled, Musa must learn to mimic the mannerisms of people with physical disabilities from Nergis, a girl his age. Together, the two children form an enduring friendship as they navigate their plight.

As the suppression of their adult world increases, Musa rescues Nergis into his dream of a rabbit empire founded in an old mine with all the rabbits Musa could save from the traps and the hound races. What will Musa and Nergis’s fate be as they fight to save themselves and the rabbits? Will they forever remain lost in a world of fantasy?

Milani Perera