BEST NARRATIVE FEATURE

Maryna Er Gorbach and Mehmet Bahadir Er

100 min | Turkey | 2019

Ismet, a Turkish soldier who worked at the Turkish-Greek border as a Commander of the Coast Guard has recently retired. Now a civilian, he struggles to communicate with his family and people around him. In the midst of this transition, two Syrian refugees (Omar and Mariye) move into the house next to his and the ‘human experience’ begins where he is forced to face his prejudices and political view.

Professional actors Taj Sher Yakub (Omar) and Hala Alsayasneh (Mariye) were Syrian refugees living in Turkey under temporary immigration status when this was filmed. Recently, the French Immigration Office has accepted Hala Alsayasneh as an “artist immigrant”; she is currently living in Paris and working as an actress.

Awards: International Competition – Best Film, Best Script, Best Actor at South East European Film Festival, Paris, France; Ecumenical Jury Award at Warsaw Film Festival (World Premiere), Poland; Audience Best Film & Best Script Award at Malatya Int’l Film Festival, Turkey; Best Film & Best Director Award at Kayseri Film Festival, Turkey; Best Film Award at Santa Cruz Film Festival, Argentina; Dialog Award Nomination at Cottbus Film Festival, Germany; International Competition at Kolkata Film Festival, India; Best Actor at Fantasporto Film Festival, Porto, Portugal; Official Selection at Haifa Film Festival

SCREENING WITH

MARASIM - BEYOND BORDERS

Priscilla Elias

9 min | UAE | 2019 | US Premiere

Expats from two nations at war, bond in a foreign land over a common love of cricket. Forming a camaraderie - their marasim (connection) fades their partition.