Al Jazeera Documentary Channel is participating in the 38th edition of the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) with three co-productions. These films will be screened in the 'World Premiere' and 'Bright Light' and 'Festival Selections' sections, which celebrate human sensitivity and visual innovation in documentary storytelling and provide a platform that brings filmmakers and audiences together.
Al Jazeera Documentary Channel's participation is the culmination of a continuous process of work to develop the Arab documentary scene through the 'Al Jazeera Documentary Days' initiative, which has hosted a number of promising projects over the past two years.
The channel has supported these projects throughout the development and production stages, within the framework of a vision aimed at establishing a culture of international co-operation and creating impactful images capable of conveying human issues with depth and visual beauty.
Among these films, the 84-minute film '32 Meters' stands out, making its world premiere in the Bright Light section. It tells the story of a Turkish woman named Halima, who challenges the deeply rooted traditions of her conservative village and rejects the stereotypical role of women limited to caring for the home and children. Believing that life has broader horizons, Halima decides to organise a shooting competition for women, facing the rejection and ridicule of men who argue that "guns are not toys" and that "shooting is a man's business."
'Between Two Shores' tells the story of a young woman, Samia, who grew up in Barcelona and feels an emotional distance from her Algerian mother. The film offers a warm visual narrative that connects memory, identity, and belonging, in a personal journey from exile to roots, from anxiety to human understanding between two generations.
The third film, 'Do You Love Me?' by Lebanese director Lana Daher, delves into Lebanon's audiovisual history across seventy years of roots, including photographs, films, home tapes, and television programmes. The film builds its vision entirely on archival material, reinterpreting Beirut and Lebanon through the lens of its photographic memory, revealing the complex relationship between love, nostalgia, and homeland. This visual narrative reflects a history of fluctuations between beauty, pain, and the search for relative tranquility.
