Filmfestival in Bayreuth. Such a wonderful audience and vibe in the team! I hope to be back there next year. In the picture you also see my dear collaborators Alessandro and Andras.

The film that we were presenting that the Bayreuth Filmfestival - KONTRAST - is called Pizza, Democracy and the little Prince. It was produced by Open Citadel in cooperation with Give a Hand.

Because the film is currently touring festivals, our friends came to see it there. It's not online yet. Once the festival tour is over, we will certainly share the Film on Steemit. We are very curious to hear your thoughts about it.

THE IDEA

Profound discoveries and new friendships are made during interactions between Syrian children seeking refuge in Istanbul, and international students, volunteering in Turkey over their summer holidays. As these unlikely pairings are thrust together the Syrian refugees surprise and overwhelm their international counterparts with their bravery, humour and humanity showing above all that they too are just children.

THE CONCEPT

A group of Syrian children living as refugees in Istanbul are each paired with an international student to converse and share some life stories. Despite the chaos and difficulties these young refugees have endured fleeing their war-torn home nation they show that they have retained their grit, tenacity and sense of humour. As conversation flows between the series of improbable duos it becomes evident that though there might exist a number of cultural and linguistic barriers ultimately there is more common ground than one might have previously thought. Bonding over pizza, football and an Arabic copy of the little prince amongst other things the young refugees make this realisation inevitable and champion their own resilience and humanity through a series of endearing encounters with their international counterparts.

THE WHY

The Syrian humanitarian and refugee crisis is an issue which has saturated the news in one way or another for quite some time now since the start of the civil war in 2011. Generally much of the coverage has been productive and helps to raise awareness about an important issue. However it is equally true the narrative has often been warped and twisted along the way leading to a disconnect with the reality of the situation on the ground and crucially with the identity of those who are afflicted. Indeed some of the coverage focusses upon the intense victimhood of these displaced peoples seeking to elicit a cheap emotional reaction through a jarring depiction of the worst hardships and horrors that they face.
Conversely a less compassionate message can be found which stresses the burdens that refugees place upon host nations and the ramifications of their displacement for others. Ultimately it is our belief that both interpretations and depictions of these disenfranchised peoples are divisive, dehumanising and unproductive helping to foster an “us” and “them” mentality, which is exactly what we sought to combat with this film.

Instead we seek to show the world the enormous richness in humanity that these Syrian refugees possess and empower those actually affected by this crisis with the opportunity to take back control over the narrative. Indeed ‘Pizza, Democracy and the Little Prince’ does just this, allowing a group of young Syrian refugees to demonstrate to both the international volunteers who came to help them, as well as the viewer at home that they cannot be reduced to mere victims nor burdens. Rather they are people just like anyone else, albeit resiliently enduring some especially difficult circumstances.
Throughout the course of the film it is exactly this which emerges as the young refugees are quick to challenge the dangerous preconception that they are “other” to those who are fortunate enough to be mere bystanders in this humanitarian crisis. Indeed by forging bonds over shared interests and passions with their international counterparts these young refugees refuse to have their humanity questioned and champion to the world that they are more than simply refugees they are people with the same hopes and aspirations as any other.

This is a powerful humanising message which fosters unity and makes it difficult to not identify with and feel compassion for the victims of this humanitarian crisis.
We believe that empowering these disenfranchised peoples to challenge the perceptions of who they are is key to promoting a more nuanced understanding of the Syrian refugee crisis, setting the stage for successful integration and in galvanising others into the positive action necessary to effectuate social change. It is our sincere hope that through the more humanising depictions of the crisis found in our short film we can change and improve the current culture surrounding this issue. Our goals is for this film to be shown at schools and other educational establishments around the world as an education tool which can help foster a more tolerant and open minded understanding of the situation and those who are affected by it. This in turn should help us to move forward as a society and forge a more positive reality for the next generation.

We are filmmakers and therefor try to open the hearts of people to the individual stories of these children. I hope that we could provoke some thoughts amongst the people in Bayreuth.

Best
Alessandro & Elena