The Long Season

Human Rights Competition
Leonard Retel Helmrich
The Netherlands
2017
90min
Arabic

Most refugees who left Syria during the war ended up in camps like Madjal Anjar in Lebanon. The majority of the camp's inhabitants fled Raqqa, the official capital of the ISIS caliphate. They depend on aid organizations for survival, but some earn money working in the fields of a local farmer who treats them with contempt. The others spend their time waiting for the bus that brings news from Raqqa. Leonard Retel Helmrich spent a year-and-a-half following the lively and resilient characters: a love-sick young man, eager to marry despite his elders’ sharp discouragement; a conflicted teacher, passionate about her work at the camp, but under pressure to return to her husband in Syria; and a family torn apart when a husband marries a second wife. This intimate film captures daily life for those whose futures are postponed by war.

Projections: 
11.09. Friday 17:45
Toldi
English & Hungarian Subtitles
Discussion
Producer: 
Pieter van Huystee
Editor: 
Jos Driessen
Jelle Redeker
Camera: 
Leonard Retel Helmrich
Ramia Suleiman
Sound: 
Ranko Paukovic
Music: 
Khyam Allami
Production info: 
Pieter van Huystee Film
Distribution info: 
Films Transit International Inc., Jan Rofekamp, 21, Place Epernay, Lorraine, Quebec, Canada, J6Z 4K9, Telephone: 1-514-844-3358, jan@filmstransit.com, filmstransit.com
Festivals: 
IDFA
OneWorld Prague
London Human Rights Watch FF
Cinedoc - Tblisi
Docaviv
DocsAgainstGravity
Awards: 
IDFA – Best Dutch Documentary
SHANGHAI FF – Best Documentary