2019

Ghiath Ayoub is a filmmaker and visual artist born in 1989 in Yabrod, Syria. He is a graduate of the Faculty of Fine Art University of Damascus (2013), and is the co-founder of a number of open spaces across Beirut. Ghiath has worked in graphic design and on films that have been featured online and in global exhibition spaces. In addition, he is actively involved in various civil society initiatives and projects, such as Humans of Syria. His co-directed film, STILL RECORDING, won Valdivia Best Film and Venice Critic’s Week FIPRESCI & Audience awards.

Saeed Al Batal, is a citizen journalist, photographer and filmmaker born in 1988 in Tartous, Syria. He delivered training and led numerous workshops in photography and news reporting, and has also worked as a reporter for various radio stations and wrote articles on Syrian current affairs for various agencies and institutions. Saeed is one of the founders of the Sam Lenses online gallery and the Humans of Syria project. His co-directed film, STILL RECORDING, won Valdivia Best Film and Venice Critic’s Week FIPRESCI & Audience awards.

Marouan Omara (born in 1987 in Cairo) is a documentary filmmaker who works with film, video and photography. He studied filmmaking at the Academy of Cinema, Arts and Technology; and Applied Arts at Helwan University in Egypt. His works seek to express a dreamlike notion through exploring the overlap of fiction and reality as they correspond with everyday experiences. He is currently an adjunct professor in film production at the American University in Cairo. MAROUAN directed CROP (2013) and co-directed the award-winning documentary feature, DREAMWAY (2018).

Johanna Domke is a visual artist and filmmaker who studied Fine Arts at the Royal Danish Art Academy in Copenhagen and the Malmö Art Academy in Sweden. Her video work received considerable attention in recognized art institutions around the world. Her fascination for film made her follow post-graduate studies in Scriptwriting and Directing at the Media Art Academy in Cologne, Germany. She currently produces art work with a focus on what lies in the space where art and cinema meet, with a combined structural and socio-political approach.

Erige Sehiri is a film director and producer. In 2012, she directs ”My Father’s Facebook”. Since 2013, she dedicated herself to filming the Tunisian railways and made her first feature film “La Voie Normale”.

Emil Langballe (born in 1982) graduated from the UK National Film & Television School in 2013. His graduation documentary short film, BEACH BOYS, was honored in film festivals such as Karlovy Vary, Thessaloniki, Tampere, and Toronto's Hot Docs. Emil went on to direct well-received documentaries including JOSEPHINE’S FARM (2015) and THE WAIT (2016); the latter of which was selected at IDFA Panorama. In 2019, both of his films, Q’S BARBERSHOP and A MARRIED COUPLE, premiered in competition at CPH:DOX.