Directed by Waad al-Khateab and Edward Watts, the film is based on Waad al-Kateabs story of surviving five years of the Syrian crisis.
The documentary film For Sama directed by Emmy-award winning filmmakers Waad al-Khateab and Edward Watts has been awarded the Golden Eye prize at the Cannes Film Festival.
The feature tells al-Kateab’s story of being a young mother from the exodus of the war in 2012 through the fall of Aleppo in December 2016.
For Sama is an intimate journey into the female experience of war. The feature is based on Waad al-Kateabs life through the five years of the uprising in Aleppo, as she falls in love, gets married and gives birth to Sama, all while cataclysmic conflict rises around her.
Her camera captures stories of loss, laughter and survival as Waad wrestles with an impossible choice whether or not to flee the city to protect her daughters life, when leaving means abandoning the struggle for freedom for which she has already sacrificed so much.
This year’s jury was headed by French filmmaker Yolande Zauberman, along with actress Romane Bohringer, actor Eric Caravaca, Bright Leaves director Ross McElwee and Havana Film Festival head Ivan Giroud. It was the first year the prize was on the official schedule and was presented by film festival head Thierry Fremaux and president Pierre Lescure.
The annual prize for non-fiction films is selected from across Cannes festival programming line-ups, including the Official Selection, Un Certain Regard, special and out-of-competition screenings, short films, Cannes Classics, Directors Fortnight, Critics Week and ACID sidebars.
The Golden Eye was founded in 2015 by the French writers union SCAM, with the support of the festival, Frances National Audiovisual Institute and Audiens.
