A still from the photo film: “My body is here, my soul is there”: “Homelands” was the theme of the photo film project, in which girls and young women participated between October 1st and November 2nd, 2018, all united by the experience of having left their childhood home. Many of the participants incorporated their experiences of displacement into the narratives of their photo films. The result is a diverse range of film projects that use a variety of methods to explore the memories and present lives of the filmmakers. Project information in Persian, project information in Arabic
They were inspired during the introductory seminar (October 1-3, 2018) by, among other things, a fascinating presentation and discussion with Lela Ahmadzai, multimedia journalist and photographer, active in the New German Media Makers network. In connection with her work and projects such as "The Unyielding" / portraits of women in Kabul or the platform handbookgermany.de, the discussion also focused on practical interview techniques and methods for using photography to tell stories and create suspense.
Between seminars, everyone gathered material for their photo film ideas developed in the introductory seminar and exchanged ideas online.
For the second seminar, held from October 29th to November 2nd, 2018, each group brought materials and ideas for creating their own photo film. Together, they further developed these ideas, addressed technical questions, and practiced their skills. The participants then photographed at various locations in Berlin, recording sounds and voices. Experienced film and photography instructors supported them throughout all stages of the process. To edit images, text, and sound, everyone learned how to use video editing software to produce their own photo films.
The result is a diverse collection of photo films, each offering a personal perspective on the participants' homeland(s). Artistic and journalistic influences, as well as the participants' experiences of fleeing their home countries, their upbringing in different nations, and their lives and studies in Berlin, all contributed to the creation of these films.
Below you will find some impressions and finished films.
- “Arab food”
- "on the way"
- "My Story"
- "Life is a story"
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"My body is here, my soul is there" (not yet published)
Making of: Photo film “My body is here, my soul is there”
Project information in Persian
Project information “Homelands”: Arabic, Farsi
Scene from the photo film "My Body Is Here, My Soul Is There," which will be released here shortly. To view more film stills, click the image above. Please note that by clicking/starting the video, data will be transmitted to Flickr (see privacy policy).
"Arab Food"
Making of: Photo film "Arab Food"
Making of: Film editing “Arab Food”
Synopsis: For the filmmakers, home is intrinsically linked to Arabic cuisine: its ingredients, aromas, colors, flavors, shared meals, conversations, laughter, and singing. In their photo-based film, they guide us through a day of culinary traditions: from morning coffee to a leisurely breakfast consisting of numerous dishes, served on a blanket and eaten while seated on the floor, to lunch at home or a weekend barbecue picnic, and finally, the evening's sweets, nuts, snacks, and fruit. We watch as the dishes are prepared and learn their names. We also discover that cooking is a communal activity that brings together and maintains connections between family, friends, and acquaintances far from their native Syria. The images are accompanied by a song about love.
Warning: Do not watch this film on an empty stomach!
Information sheet/Farsi: Photo film "Arab Food",
Information sheet/Arabic: Photo film: "Arab Food"
Information sheet/German: Photo film "Arab Food"
To watch the film "Arab Food", on the title or screenshot. Please note that by clicking/starting the video, data will be transmitted to Vimeo (see privacy policy). click
Working on three photo film projects:
"on the way"
The film "On the Road" tells the story of a young woman who has been living in Germany for three years. In conversation with another young woman, we learn about her family's escape from their homeland of Afghanistan, their long and arduous journey through Iran and Turkey to Greece. After arriving in Germany, the family lived for two years in a single room in a refugee shelter until they were able to move into their own apartment. Finally, she can sleep and read in peace. She misses her sisters who stayed behind in Afghanistan and her friends, but she can't go back.
Maria's narrative is accompanied by photographs that depict her journey from the wannseeFORUM, the location of the photo-film workshop, to her apartment and back.
We walk with her, seeing pairs of images and panoramas of streets in a residential area, bus stops, intersections, train stations, platforms, tracks, highways, parking lots, housing estates, playgrounds, stairwells, the apartment door, Maria's room, her parents' room, her brother's room, the kitchen, and again bus stops and streets, until we return to the starting point.
The film ends with two photos from Kabul, taken on the day the film was completed and sent to the filmmaker via the internet.
Information sheet "On the Road" photo film/Farsi
Information sheet "On the Road" photo film/Arabic
Information sheet "On the Road" photo film/German
To watch the film "On the Road," click on the title or screenshot. Please note that by clicking/starting the video, data will be transmitted to Vimeo (see policy). privacy
The young filmmaker tells her story through personal photographs of herself, her Mexican family, and her homeland. She shows us family photos taken on special and, above all, happy occasions: births, birthdays, celebrations, outings, and trips, in which family members of all generations participated. We watch the filmmaker grow up, see her dressed up in balloon-decorated tents, surrounded by dancing people. In her narration, she also recounts how she experienced her parents' separation when she was five years old. The accompanying photographs show us how the family remained united even beyond that difficult time.
Information sheet photo film: “My Story”/Farsi
Information sheet photo film: “My Story”/Arabic
Information sheet photo film: “My_Story”/ German
To watch the film "My Story," click on the title or screenshot. Please note that by clicking/starting the video, data will be transmitted to Vimeo (see privacy policy). "My Story"
"Life is a story"
- work on the photo film: "Life is a story".
A film in three chapters. The young filmmakers each tell their own stories, about their families, friends, festivals, places, landscapes, traditions, and conflicts in their countries of origin. Although the two grew up very differently—one Christian, the other Muslim—they have been connected by friendship since arriving in their new home of Berlin.
1/“You can drive a person from their homeland, but you cannot drive a homeland from a person.” (Hala Attallah): We see photographs of streets, narrow alleys, courtyards, parks, swimming pools, a harbor, the sea, palm trees again and again, family outings, and portraits of the filmmaker. Then suddenly the image is distorted and there is static. This is followed by photographs showing explosions, burning tires, and fleeing people.
2/ “There are always places and people you never forget, who always stay in your heart.” (Maryam Mikhaeel): The second chapter of the film begins with a sunrise and birds chirping across the blue sky. The photographs primarily depict nature: a hand resting on red berries, beautiful uninhabited mountain landscapes, pine cones, evergreen trees, a chapel with a cross, a road leading away from a house, and a family of five. We see these same people years later as adults, celebrating their 17th birthday together as a family, this time in Berlin.
3/ “Now things will be different”: The last part of the film celebrates the friendship between the two and shows how they live it: spending time together, shopping, eating Arabic food, indulging in ice cream, taking photos of themselves with giant teddy bears or monster masks.
Information sheet for the photo film: Life is a Story/Farsi
Information sheet for the photo film "Life is a Story"/Arabic
Information sheet for the photo film: Life is a Story/German
To watch the film "My Story," click on the title or screenshot. Please note that by clicking/starting the film, data will be transmitted to Vimeo (see privacy policy). " Life is a story."
To view more impressions from the seminar, click on the image above. Please note that by clicking/starting the image, data will be transmitted to Flickr (see privacy policy).
Scene from the photo film "Life is a Story"–
The project is a collaboration between the wannseeFORUM Foundation and the Concrete Narrative Society eV.
It was funded by the Berlin Project Fund for Cultural Education.
The wannseeFORUM Foundation is a recognized sponsor of the Federal Agency for Civic Education.
The project took place as part of the collaboration in the program “Political Youth Education in the AdB” in the project group “Digital Media and Democracy”.