Aya

Draussen bleiben

A very personal and dynamic meditation on the current global refugee crisis through the eyes and voices of campaigners, specially children, where past and present establish a dialogue. A reflection on the importance of human rights.

An estimated 12 million people live in refugee camps worldwide and only 0.1% are resettled, repatriated, or integrated into normal society each year. The feature-length documentary.

Takes place in the Saharawi refugee camps in Algeria against the historical backdrop of Spanish colonialism and the Moroccan invasion of the Western Sahara. The Saharawi women, who make up 80% of the adult refugee population, provide a powerful voice as they reveal how they came to assume primary responsibility for the survival of the remains of their families and in turn the entire refugee population.

A Palestinian grain miller in a Jordanian refugee camp safeguards her culture and shares her people’s history through food prepared with love, longing, and sumud—the Palestinian spirit of steadfastness.

Aïcha is 59. She's been through some hard times. She decided to turn to helping others. Seeing firsthand the government's lack of support, she tries in her own way to remedy the lack of care for refugees. She dedicates the majority of her time to helping refugees in the greater Paris area, first as part of the "Solidarité Migrants Wilson" organization operating in the suburbs north of Paris, then in the nonprofit she founded, "la Team du Coeur", with the help of one of her daughters, her son-in-law, a Sudanese refugee himself, and a friend. Together, they offer on-street support and enter refugee camps daily to talk, provide material support and a listening ear.

As the Syrian war continues to leave entire generations without education, health care, or a state, Lost in Lebanon closely follows four Syrians during their relocation process. The resilience of this Syrian community, which currently makes up one fifth of the population in Lebanon, is astoundingly clear as its members work hard to collaborate, share resources, and advocate for themselves in a new land. With the Syrian conflict continuing to push across borders, lives are becoming increasingly desperate due to the devastating consequences of new visa laws that the Lebanese government has implemented, leaving families at risk of arrest, detention, and deportation. Despite these obstacles, the film encourages us to look beyond the staggering statistics of displaced refugees and focus on the individuals themselves.

During the Syrian civil war, the district of Yarmouk, home to thousands of Palestinians, became the scene of dramatic and ferocious fighting. The film follows the destiny of civilians during the brutal sieges, imposed by the Syrian regime, that took place in the wake of the battles. With his camera, Abdallah Al-Khatib composes a love song to a place that proudly resists the atrocities of war.

13-year-old Khodor is a child whose family tries to issue him an ID document that proves his existence and gives him the right to education, health-care and movement outside of the Palestinian refugee camp of Shatila in Beirut, Lebanon. Through the process, many of the family's old secrets are revealed.

"The Boy Of The Fish" follows Noon, a young boy living in a Syrian refugee camp, who finds solace and a sense of freedom in a whale-shaped doll he names "Bahr." Set against the challenging realities of camp life, Noon’s journey is both a story of resilience and a testament to the boundless imagination of childhood. Through vivid symbolism and a unique soundscape, the film explores themes of loss, hope, and the longing for freedom amidst confinement. Shot entirely on an iPhone due to restrictions in the conflict zone, the film combines raw authenticity with poetic depth to capture the emotional landscape of a young soul navigating adversity.

Documentary Film maker, Mark Brown, attempts to discover the damaging effect the over-spilling immigrant population has on the coastal city of Calais, France.

Ekhlas Alhlwani was forced to flee Syria with her three children and now lives in Zaatari, a refugee camp in the Jordanian desert. Rizzi spent seven weeks observing her and other women's daily life, which is devoid of any prospects. He shows how Alhlwani makes every effort to establish some kind of normality for her family despite the difficult camp conditions. The film vividlyconveys the cruelty of war, and especially the state o funcertainty and rootlessness to which refugees are exposed. The film is the first part of a trilogy that focuses on the emergence of a new civil consciousness in Malaysia, Tunisia, Egypt, Bahrain and Syria, as well as the social implications of the end of post-colonialism in these countries.

Süchtig nach Jihad

A film about the unprecedented Swiss grassroots movement of regular citizens who rise to aid thousands of refugees stranded at the European borders. In rich and safe Switzerland people from all backgrounds leave their regular life behind to support people in need. There is a Swiss farmer and his wife who keep cows in the Swiss Alps, a former commander of the Swiss Army, an elder rich lady residing at the lakeside, and a successful comedian and entertainer. These unexperienced volunteers take on an adventure that will change their lives forever.

Dadaab: The largest refugee camps in the world. Situated in Northeastern Kenya, it accommodates approximately 500,000 refugees, mostly from Somalia. A great number of these people have lived there most of their lives, trying to survive in congested and seemingly hopeless conditions. For those who know little more than life inside the camps, the outside word is just an 'abstract thought', far away from daily reality. Both the invisible and the real gates of Dadaab have made hundreds of thousands of people feel like prisoners, losing hope for the future.

Interviews with Palestinians living in Lebanese refugee camps, some of it shot in Sabra and Shatila before the massacre.

In the Gaza refugee camp of Jerash, Palestinians face the critical issue of lacking identification documents. This situation undermines their rights and hinders access to essential services and opportunities.

12-year-old Dyab is a Kurdish Yazidi boy living at Arbat refugee camp, after the horrendous attacks by the Islamic States on their villages at Shingal Mountains (Sinjar). However, Dyab’s dream is, to become a filmmaker and actor and tell the stories and sufferings of his people to the outside world.

"We, the Yazidis, became doves. Doves without wings", says Hedil. Stranded with her family in a Yazidi refugee camp in Eastern Turkey, she reminisces about her former life in Northern Iraq and recounts the horrors of her escape. The film follows two families' attempts at normality in an otherwise miserable place. (ML)

Cambodian refugee Ted Ngoy builds a multi-million dollar empire by baking America's favourite pastry: the doughnut.