Thu, May 25, 2017
Nearly one million ethnic Arabs fleeing war and violence back home have come to Germany since 2015. This film follows one of them, newspaper editor and Syrian asylum seeker Ramy Alasheq, as he looks into historical patterns of Arab immigration and how the latest arrivals are being received in their new country. For Ramy and many others, life has not been the same since young men said to be Arab were accused of robbing and attacking German women on New Year's Eve 2015 in his new hometown, Cologne. It is a city that Ramy has come to love. But while he and fellow immigrants initially received a warm reception, there are now widespread calls to halt the entry of Arab refugees into Germany. For hundreds of years, Germany has been a magnet for migrants and refugees from all over the world. But its specific focus on encouraging migration from countries in the Middle East like Egypt, Syria, Iraq and to a lesser extent Jordan, Palestine and North Africa, is not often discussed. Through the human stories of second and third-generation migrants, as well as incoming new refugees, this film paints a picture of how the experience of Arab immigrants in Germany has changed over the decades. We ask what it means to be a foreigner in Germany, and at the same time come to understand Germany itself and the reasoning behind its immigration policies. We also hear from German analysts and decision-makers about Germany's dependency on migrant communities to re-populate its dwindling towns and keep its economy strong.
Sun, Dec 9, 2018
In the fields and terraces of the occupied West Bank, a Palestinian woman is leading a quiet revolution. Vivien Sansour is distributing rare, ancient heirloom seeds to Palestinian farmers. Inspired by memories of her grandmother and the delicious food of her childhood, Vivien wants to reintroduce long forgotten Palestinian produce to the tables of people across the West Bank and beyond. And she believes these organic, climate change-resistant seeds are the key to that. She experiments with growing the treasured seeds in her own garden beside the separation wall, under the watchful eye of Israeli soldiers. Popular local herbs and seasonal vegetables flourish as she tends to her garden with expert care and dreams of reviving and celebrating Palestinian food culture. But can she persuade farmers struggling with the pressures imposed by the Israeli occupation and agribusiness to embrace such traditional crop-growing methods? To convince them of the value of the seeds, she sets up a traveling kitchen, taking her seeds and their produce on the road and reminding Palestinians of the power of food to capture the joy and beauty of home.
Sun, Sep 5, 2021
On the cusp of adulthood, Peyman and his friends are refugees stuck in Greece. They find themselves in limbo but armed with a new-found freedom. They pass their time on the streets of Athens sharing jokes, rap battles, stories of their past and dreams for their future. When Peyman and his mum receive exciting news about their refugee status, a celebration soon turns sour. As Peyman tries to make sense of the world around him, he turns to his music.