Prize-Winning Documentary About the City's Rescuers

22 February 5, 2017 Culture Film Last Men in Aleppo – prize-winning documentary about the city’s rescuers Samar Kadi Beirut hat is shown in the documentary “ illustrates just a small part of the suffering that we haveW been through,” said Ibrahim al-Haj, a member of Syria’s civil defence White Helmet teams operat- ing in rebel-held areas that came to be known as the White Helmets. The documentary Last Men in Aleppo is about the gruelling day- to-day work of the White Helmets. It recently won the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Documentary at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. Directed by Syrian film-maker Feras Fayyad and co-directed and co-edited by Steen Johannessen of Denmark, the film follows two members of the White Helmets — Khaled Harrah and Mahmoud Heter — A 2016 picture shows members of the Syrian Civil Defence evacuating a child in the rebel-held eastern Ghouta area, east of the capital as they work through the rubble and Damascus. (AFP) ruins of bombed buildings trying to rescue victims after each attack from the air during the siege of eastern world to know that in Syria there are The last scenes of the documen- and-a-half. We were all affected by taking two members of the group to Aleppo people who are struggling for peace tary were filmed one week before his death. None of the cameramen the February 26th Oscars ceremony “Khaled was martyred while res- and humanity,” Khatib said. “Unfor- the fall of eastern Aleppo to regime could film the incident.” in Los Angeles but US President cuing civilians, as Mahmoud strug- tunately, the image they have about forces, cameraman Mujahid Abu al- Reviews of Last Men in Aleppo Donald Trump’s travel ban — which gled to dig out victims from under Syria nowadays is that there is Joud said by phone from Turkey. noted the many children and young affects Syria and six other countries the debris of destroyed buildings. merely a war between [the Islamic “We started filming two years people the director interviewed. — may prevent that. The sufferings were much, much State] ISIS and the regime.” ago under very difficult conditions While representing the future of The White Helmets producer Joan- bigger than anyone could imagine,” “We wanted to show the sacri- but the last few months were the the country, Aleppo’s children offer na Natasegara said in a statement: Haj said in a telephone interview fices of these volunteers, who they worst,” he said. “More than once we a semblance of relative innocence “These people are the bravest hu- from Idlib in north-western Syria. are, what their mission is, how they have been directly targeted while and truth in a heavily politicised manitarians on the planet and the Fayyad’s film was shot over work and under what conditions. escorting the civil defence teams, and propaganda-heavy conflict. It idea that they could not be able to two years beginning in 2014 while Also, we tried to shed light on the going into extremely dangerous is heart-wrenching to see and hear come with us and enjoy that success bombs from Syrian and Russian humanitarian catastrophe that was zones.” small children talk about having is just abhorrent.” planes rained on Aleppo, restrict- taking place. When you see the film, their schools bombed, losing fam- The White Helmets are an unlike- ing the movement of the volunteers you will know the extent of suffer- The White Helmets ily members or dealing with fallout ly group of heroes. They are tailors, and the 250,000 civilians — the ones ing of the people who were living in have saved more from chemical weapons. bakers, teachers and other ordinary remaining from a pre-war popula- Aleppo,” added Khatib, who spoke than 78,529 lives. The White Helmets, who were ac- Syrians who banded together in tion of more than 2 million — to an via telephone from Turkey. cused by Syrian President Bashar 2013 to save the lives others were ever-smaller part of the city. When- White Helmet volunteers and Assad as being the “facelift of al- working so hard to take. They have ever a bomb reduced a building to their civil defence centres are often The worst situation, however, Nusra in Aleppo” and of faking res- saved more than 78,529 lives. ruins, the White Helmets would ar- targeted. Planes would bomb civil- which Joud said will mark him for- cue operations for publicity, have “Thank God our work is being ap- rive as quickly as possible to rescue ians and circle back to bomb rescue ever, was when Khaled Harrah, one been receiving quite some atten- preciated and we have been award- the injured. workers who were responding to of the film’s two protagonists, was tion. Orlando von Einsiedel’s short ed more than 35 awards in the past Film coordinator Khaled Khatib the first attack. killed in the bombardment while Netflix documentaryThe White three years, including nomination stressed the importance of the doc- “We have lost more than 159 carrying out his duties. Helmets has been nominated for an to the Noble Peace Prize,” Haj said. umentary as a testament to the self- White Helmets volunteers, martyrs “It was a big shock for all of us Academy Award and actor George “This is an honour for us and for the lessness and courage of the White killed in different parts of Syria. to see one of the main characters Clooney is reportedly working on a Syrian revolution in general.” Helmets. Also, some 83 members have been disappear,” Joud said. “He was a feature version. “We feel it is important for peo- totally disabled after losing limbs or friend and someone that we have The film-makers behind The Samar Kadi is The Arab Weekly ple and average citizens around the their eyesight,” Haj said. been following for more than a year- White Helmets said they planned on Travel and Society section editor. Film on Arab-Israeli women in Tel Aviv tests taboos Suheir Sheikh up about 20% of the country’s 8.5 million people, prefer not to see on screen. Jerusalem The conservative leadership of Umm al-Fahm, a large Arab Israeli film about Arab-Israeli town that features in the film, has women who left their vil- called for a boycott of the movie. lages to live in Tel Aviv “We support art that has a pur- has angered traditional- pose and art that criticises the nega- ists in Israel’s Arab com- tive aspects of our society, but we munity,A who say its depiction of ho- oppose a movie that distorts the im- mosexuality and independent single age of Umm al-Fahm,” said Abed Al- women is insulting. Monem Fuad, a spokesman for the In Between, which has an Arab municipality. director and a Jewish producer, won two awards — Best Debut Fea- In Between is about ture Film and Artistic Achievement Arab-Israeli women in an Israeli Feature Film — at the who left their Haifa International Film Festival in October and accolades in Toronto villages to live in Tel and San Sebastian with its portrayal Aviv. of three very different women who share an apartment in Israel’s most Sana Jammelieh, who plays Sal- liberal city. ma, said it was time for Israel’s Arab Layla is a lawyer and liberal Mus- community to address the movie’s lim who parties every night; Salma, subject matter. from a traditional Christian family, “No one wants to talk about ho- is gay and works as a DJ and bar- mosexuality or a woman who feels tender; and Nour is a devout Muslim free enough to party all night and computer student whose Muslim fi- drink alcohol but they should be ancé rapes her. discussed so (Arab society) can “The women have chosen to catch up with the modern world,” seek a modern life by abandoning she said. the customs and traditions of their Mouna Hawa, who plays Layla, home villages but at the same time, said she expected the criticism but as ethnic Palestinians in Tel Aviv, added that it did not worry her: “It they encounter discrimination,” took courage to make this film but I director Maysaloun Hamoud said. feel convinced that it reflects many “They just can’t win.” real lives in our society.” The film addresses issues that A scene from the movie In Between. (Deux Beaux Garcon Films) some of Israel’s Arabs, who make (Reuters).

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