Students Waad and Hamzi meet, fall in love, get married, and Waad becomes pregnant with her daughter Sama. All of this happens in Aleppo, Syria, from the time of the uprising through the catastrophic siege. The thought of bringing a child into war transforms FOR SAMA from a war documentary to an intimate, brutal, painful and touching letter from a mother to her daughter explaining why they stayed in Aleppo during the siege and portraying how their lives are touched by the extreme surroundings. FOR SAMA has won several well-deserved jury and audience awards, and is a stark reminder about the ongoing war in Syria.
FOR SAMA opens the human rights programme Checkpoints on Thursday 26 september with an introduction by Syrian doctor Ali Watti. After the screening, there will be a Q&A (question session) with co-director Edward Watts and Osama Shaheen, a doctor who worked during the Syrian war.
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WINNER FILM: Winner of the Checkpoints Award. Read about the award winners here.
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Festival guest: Co-director Edward Watts
Bergens Tidende will host a conversation about Syria at Vaskeriet before the Checkpoints opening with FOR SAMA-co-director Edward Watts. Facebook event
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All prereleases are eligible for Filmweb's Audience Award.
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Waad Al-Khateab og Edward Watts
Waad Al-Khateab (Syria), Edward Watts (UK) FOR SAMA is their first documentary feature.
