This film is an experimental documentary project that seeks to recount the multifaceted stories of the Nakba through the lens of a family. By weaving personal narratives with historical events, it attempts to reflect the broader, collective trauma experienced by Palestinians and also draws an important parallel to the “second” (if it ever really stopped since 1948…) Nakba happening to the people of Gaza as we speak. The film also delves into the layers of intergenerational trauma and the legacy passed down to children of exile or those exiled themselves.
Through this, the project explores profound questions: How do members of the Palestinian diaspora navigate their identity while living away from home? How do they reconnect with their cultural roots? These themes are examined implicitly throughout the film, using evocative elements like food, music, and archival material. Interwoven with these are the intimate interviews I conducted with some family members, adding depth to the narrative and offering a reflection on memory, displacement, and resistance.
LANGUAGE : Arabic, English, French COUNTRY : Palestine, Germany YEAR : 2024 DURATION : 11m DIRECTOR : Nour MUSIC : Henno el 3arayes (traditional folklore song), Trio Joubran’s The Trees We Wear, Fairuz’s Sanarjiou ARCHIVES : personal family archives, Project 48 – Nakba: Erasing a people, Looted and Hidden by Rona Sela
Director statement : An important note about the end of my short film, the numbers of Palestinians martyrs in Gaza since October 7th is not accurate anymore and has more than doubled since I made the film. I haven’t had access yet to a software to edit this again but I would like to point it out because I find it crucial to know the situation has gotten worse than how it already was when I made the film in 2024. Thank you for taking that into consideration.
Bio : Nour is a Liberal Arts student at the University College in Freiburg. Born in France, she grew up between there and Jordan, shaped by a multicultural and multilingual environment. Deeply passionate about art and photography, she chose to blend her cultural heritage with creative expression, resulting in an archival, personal film on the Nakba and the question of exile.
Pebbles Underground is focused on showcasing and promoting experimental, avant-garde, underground, and no-to-low budget projects by artist-humans from all over the world. Absurd, uncanny, witty, humorous, slow-video – all are welcomed, and loved.
Pebbles Underground is an independent project not funded by any government or corporation, and we intend to keep it that way. Main source of funding is personal donations from humans organizing the project, who are artists themselves, and the main drive of the project is formed by the energy and involvement of the organizers, and the public.
