South of Beirut, Lebanon is a 68 year old refugee camp housing refugees from Palestine, Syria and Iraq. Many have lived in this camp their entire lives-- Mariam AlShaar is one of them. Now, Mariam has pulled the women of this camp together to do what has never been done before. They started with a small kitchen from a micro-loan. With nearly insurmountable political odds against them-- they look to start the first refugee food truck. Their journey is one of many ups and downs but it is the community that is built, their sense of hope and how they see themselves that makes this a moving, touching film about their journey. Mariam has been known as 'the crazy lady' and now she will show just how crazy she is.
Soufra (A Moving Feast) is a moving tale of social activism and entrepreneurship in the face of calamity. It summarises the efforts of a social entrepreneur working to improve the lives of destitute women and their family living in a Lebanese refugee camp by turning their cooking skills into a profession. The women start a new phase in their life as chefs and creating mouth-watering delicacies that knows no boundaries. Soufra's story is inspiring and it teaches you to live life head-on. A cool watch. Grade B.
(Watched at the 2020 IIHS UrbanLens Film Festival.)