From Ground Zero + II

UNFINISHED STORIES

THE WISH

DREAMS OF FARAH AND ZAHRA / DREAMS OF FARAH AND ZAHRA

HASAN / HASSAN

TINY DREAMS / VERY SMALL DREAMS

English and Turkish Subtitles

Unfinished Stories

Unfinished Stories

Director / Director Nidal Damo

DCP / Renkli Color / 20’

Arabic with Turkish And English Subtitles 

What good are movies when the whole world is watching people being killed in Gaza, denied the right to live? During the war in Gaza, filmmaker Nidal tries to capture the human stories that emerge from the lost and the left behind, but each of these war-written stories is cut short. Nidal's optimistic and resilient spirit keeps him searching for the story that can bring a glimmer of hope to moments of uncertainty, pain and loss. His sense of humor emerges when he is interacting with his cat... But the loss of his son confronts him with a reality beyond his imagination, and he ceases to be the narrator and becomes the story itself. Unfinished Stories is the journey of a filmmaker following the fragmented traces of narrative in a land that allows no ending to be complete...

While the whole world watches as people in Gaza are stripped of their right to live and killed, what purpose can films serve? During the war in Gaza, filmmaker Nidal tries to capture human stories born from loss and from those left behind; yet each of these stories written by war remains unfinished. Nidal's optimism and resilience drive him to keep searching for the story that can bring a glimmer of hope to moments filled with pain, loss, and uncertainty. His sense of humor becomes obvious as he commiserates with his cat. However, the loss of his son confronts him with a reality beyond imagination, turning him from storyteller into the story itself. Unfinished Stories follows the journey of a filmmaker tracing the fragmented threads of narrative in a land where no ending can ever be complete...

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Wish

The Wish

Director/Director

Aws Al Banna

DCP / Renkli Color / 30’

Arabic with Turkish And English Subtitles 

Leaving loss behind, director Aws Al-Banna turns to the stage in the hope of putting the pieces of life back together. She brings together girls traumatized by violence and encourages them to transform their memories into performance, so that theater becomes both a refuge and a space for collective healing. In this process of drama therapy, participants are able to share the traumas of their daily lives, the traces of war and destruction, loss and the dangers of everyday life. Through memories and deeply personal experiences, theater, play, healing and hope become a safe search for solace. The documentary sheds light on the psychological wounds of post-genocide children, revealing the healing power of art and the transformation of trauma through the stage.

Director Aws Al-Banna turns to the stage with the hope of piecing life back together after leaving behind all the losses. He brings together teenage girls traumatized by violence, encouraging them to transform their memories into performance-making theatre both a refuge and a space for collective healing. During this drama therapy process, participants share their daily traumas, traces of war and destruction, losses, and the hazards of everyday life. Through their memories and profound personal experiences, the theater becomes a space for play, healing, and the pursuit of hope, safety, and reassurance. The documentary sheds light on the psychological wounds of children after genocide, revealing the healing power of art and the transformation of trauma through performance.

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Farah and Zahra's Dreams

Dreams of Farah and Zahra

Director/Director

Mostafa Al-Nabeeh

DCP / Renkli Color / 20’

Arabic with Turkish And English Subtitles

In besieged Gaza, where childhood is impossible, two young girls cling to their dreams. While Farah clings to her drawings, Zahra gives voice to fairy tales, taking children and themselves away from the world they live in, if only for a while. Amidst hunger, destruction and exile, the small worlds they create are a form of resistance; their imagination becomes a lifeline against the hardships of life. Their voices and colors are symbols of a resistance that refuses to let war steal hope. On the one hand, they try to instill hope in those around them, on the other hand, they continue to stand strong despite their own realities, dreaming of returning home to those they hope to find in their place.

In besieged Gaza, where childhood is nearly impossible, two young girls cling tightly to their dreams. While Farah immerses herself in her drawings, Zahra gives voice to fairy tales, briefly taking both the children and themselves away from the harsh realities around them. Amid hunger, destruction, and displacement, the small worlds they create become a form of resistance; their imagination acts as a lifeline against life's hardships. Their voices and colors symbolize a defiance that refuses to let war steal hope. While they try to inspire hope in those around them, they also remain strong in the face of their own reality, dreaming of returning home to the place they long for.

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Hasan

Hassan

Director/Director

Muhammad Al Sharif

DCP / Renkli Color / 30’ 

Arabic with Turkish And English Subtitles

Muhammad al Sharif tells the heartbreaking story of Hassan, who left his home to bring a sack of flour to his family to avoid starvation as Gaza was being razed to the ground. A boy who had rushed to the hospital with his father and witnessed the death of his older brother, whose legs were shattered by a bomb, is torn away from his parents by tank and rifle fire. His mother, who has already buried a son, is left in northern Gaza to worry. Hassan was threatened by an Israeli soldier to go to the south or I will shoot him, but Palestinians are taking him under their wing in the refugee camp. They make longing phone calls that are often interrupted. He leaves his mother's arms and learns how to bake bread while dreaming of returning home... He loses his father before he can fulfill this dream. This is how a teenager lives in Gaza...

Muhammad al Sharif tells the heartbreaking story of Hassan, who left his home to bring a sack of flour to his family to stave off starvation as Gaza was being razed to the ground. A child who, along with his father, rushed his brother, whose legs had been shattered by a bomb, to the hospital, witnessed his death, only to be torn from his parents at the force of tanks and rifles. His mother, who had already buried a son, is left in Northern Gaza in a state of anxiety. An Israeli soldier threatened Hasan, saying, "Go south or I'll shoot you!" Palestinians took him under their wing in the refugee camp. Hasan and his mother reconcile their longing through frequently interrupted phone calls. Torn from his mother's embrace, Hasan learned to bake bread, while dreaming of returning home. He lost his father before he could realize this dream. That's how a teenager lives in Gaza.

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Tiny Dreams

Very Small Dreams

Director/Director

I'timad Wishah

DCP / Renkli Color / 21’

Arabic with Turkish And English Subtitles 

In Gaza's refugee camps, even the most basic needs can seem out of reach. Tiny Dreams follows women, led by young Nour, as they struggle to maintain their health and dignity under unbearable conditions. Surrounded by bombardment, starvation, and a lack of basic supplies, women try to survive by desperate measures that jeopardize their health, such as using old clothes as pads, bathing in the sea, or resorting to menstrual remedies in the absence of basic hygiene products. The film reveals this silent and invisible struggle against the hardships of life in a land deprived of the most basic of human needs, and tells the story of the methods women have developed, the difficulties of pregnancy, childbirth and its aftermath, and the struggle to bring a new life in the absence of life. The stories of Nour and other women remind us how small but vital dreams can be a powerful form of resistance.

In Gaza's refugee camps, even the most basic needs can seem like an unattainable dream. Very Small Dreams follows young women, led by Nour, as they struggle to preserve their health and human dignity under unbearable conditions. Surrounded by bombardment, hunger, and a lack of essential supplies, they resort to desperate measures-using old clothes as pads, bathing in the sea, or turning to menstrual medicines in the absence of basic hygiene products-to survive. The film exposes this quiet and often invisible struggle against the hardships of life in a land deprived of fundamental necessities. It shows the methods women develop and their efforts to bring new life into a setting defined by the absence of life, through pregnancy, childbirth, and the challenges that follow. The stories of Nour and other women remind us how small yet vital dreams can become a powerful form of resilience.