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My son had many toys. He still asks me about the toys he left in that home. |
LOGLINE
Migrant Mothers of Syria is an interactive documentary web series that focuses on experiences of exile and migration through a female lens.
SYNOPSIS
The iconic photograph known as Migrant Mother, taken in 1936 by Dorothea Lange, became one of the defining images of the Great Depression. In it, a destitute woman sitting under a tent looks off into the distance, her eyes filled with apprehension, while her children huddle around her, their faces turned away from the camera. Her poverty and desperation, captured on film, not only reflects a critical period in American history but resonates even today as global conflicts continue uprooting lives, causing mass migrations unlike anything witnessed in recent history.
The Syrian refugee crisis, now its tenth year, is one of the largest humanitarian crises of our generation. 6.6 million people are internally displaced inside Syria and 5.6 have fled, seeking safety in other countries. More than half of those are women and children. While we often see their images in the news, rarely do these images reveal the realities of their day-to-day lives in exile.
Migrant Mothers of Syria is an interactive documentary web series that seeks to bring the Syrian refugee crisis out of the realm of numbers and statistics and engage audiences with personal stories about life in between places – told from the POV of mothers whose lives have been uprooted by conflict. Providing a glimpse into their memories, day-to-day struggles and hopes for the future, the documentary combines interactive drawings and short “day-in-the-life” videos to bring the user into a world that, while in many ways unfamiliar, is also somehow relatable.
Through the universal theme of motherhood, the documentary reflects on notions of home, migration and exile as being part of a shared human condition that is not confined to any given race, culture or religion but that ultimately affects us all.
The Syrian refugee crisis, now its tenth year, is one of the largest humanitarian crises of our generation. 6.6 million people are internally displaced inside Syria and 5.6 have fled, seeking safety in other countries. More than half of those are women and children. While we often see their images in the news, rarely do these images reveal the realities of their day-to-day lives in exile.
Migrant Mothers of Syria is an interactive documentary web series that seeks to bring the Syrian refugee crisis out of the realm of numbers and statistics and engage audiences with personal stories about life in between places – told from the POV of mothers whose lives have been uprooted by conflict. Providing a glimpse into their memories, day-to-day struggles and hopes for the future, the documentary combines interactive drawings and short “day-in-the-life” videos to bring the user into a world that, while in many ways unfamiliar, is also somehow relatable.
Through the universal theme of motherhood, the documentary reflects on notions of home, migration and exile as being part of a shared human condition that is not confined to any given race, culture or religion but that ultimately affects us all.
OFFICIAL TRAILER
THE WEBSITE
VIDEO WALKTHROUGH
PARTICIPANTS
Amani Idress, mother of three from Homs
Manal Ammar, mother of three from Al-Qusayr
OFFICIAL SELECTIONS
Festival Internacional de Cine Con Medios Alternativos (Mexico City, Mexico)
December 1-5, 2020
**NOMINEE: BEST WEB-DOC
The Hague Global Cinema Festival (The Hague, Netherlands)
November 13-19, 2020
Baltimore Next Media Webfest (Baltimore, USA)
October 28-November 1, 2020
**WINNER: BEST INTERACTIVE SERIES
To view full program, CLICK HERE
Mimesis Documentary Festival (Boulder, USA)
August 12-18, 2020
**WINNER: JURY AWARD & AUDIENCE AWARD, DOCUMENTARY ARTS
To view full program, CLICK HERE
Lift-Off Showcase Extravaganza (UK)
August 2020
To vote, CLICK HERE
Webfest Berlin (Berlin, Germany)
July 1-29, 2020
**WINNER: BEST NON-FICTION
To view complete list of nominees, CLICK HERE
Independent Short Awards (Los Angeles, USA)
July 2020
**WINNER: HONORABLE MENTION - BEST WEB & NEW MEDIA
To view complete list of winners, CLICK HERE
Yorkton Film Festival (Yorkton, Canada)
June 18, 2020
**WINNER: BEST DIGITAL MEDIA
To view full program, CLICK HERE
Accolade Global Film Competition (La Jolla, USA)
June 2020
**WINNER: AWARD OF MERIT - Experimental & Islamic
To view complete list of winners, CLICK HERE
Doc Edge Festival (Auckland, New Zealand)
**WORLD PREMIERE**
June 5-July 12, 2020
To view Exhibition program, CLICK HERE
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December 1-5, 2020
**NOMINEE: BEST WEB-DOC
The Hague Global Cinema Festival (The Hague, Netherlands)
November 13-19, 2020
Baltimore Next Media Webfest (Baltimore, USA)
October 28-November 1, 2020
**WINNER: BEST INTERACTIVE SERIES
To view full program, CLICK HERE
Mimesis Documentary Festival (Boulder, USA)
August 12-18, 2020
**WINNER: JURY AWARD & AUDIENCE AWARD, DOCUMENTARY ARTS
To view full program, CLICK HERE
Lift-Off Showcase Extravaganza (UK)
August 2020
To vote, CLICK HERE
Webfest Berlin (Berlin, Germany)
July 1-29, 2020
**WINNER: BEST NON-FICTION
To view complete list of nominees, CLICK HERE
Independent Short Awards (Los Angeles, USA)
July 2020
**WINNER: HONORABLE MENTION - BEST WEB & NEW MEDIA
To view complete list of winners, CLICK HERE
Yorkton Film Festival (Yorkton, Canada)
June 18, 2020
**WINNER: BEST DIGITAL MEDIA
To view full program, CLICK HERE
Accolade Global Film Competition (La Jolla, USA)
June 2020
**WINNER: AWARD OF MERIT - Experimental & Islamic
To view complete list of winners, CLICK HERE
Doc Edge Festival (Auckland, New Zealand)
**WORLD PREMIERE**
June 5-July 12, 2020
To view Exhibition program, CLICK HERE
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Behind-the-scenes Workshops
These photographs were taken during a series of arts and crafts workshops conducted by producer/director Anna Fahr at the Beirut-based NGO, Ninurta, in September 2018. The drawings created by these children illustrate the themes and interactive functions we will feature in our webdoc.
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FOLLOW MIGRANT MOTHERS ON
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Produced with the financial support of the Bell Fund Webdocs Development Grant |