Explore life from the perspective of young people faced with worlds and futures in constant flux. How do you respond to expanding horizons, shifting emotions, and the realities of the adult world around you?
This luminous and stirring collection of short films traces the delicate contours of youth on the cusp of change.
From the quiet ache of first love in Beirut’s restless streets in Ebb & Flow, to the sun-drenched memories of girlhood, sibling rivalry and migration in After the Sun, these films hold space for moments when growing up bends, pauses, or slips sideways. In A Short Film About Kids, a group of Palestinian children embark on a gentle, determined journey to see the sea, a simple everyday dream that becomes quietly radical.
Nefta Football Club walks the fine line between play and peril, as two Tunisian boys stumble into a surreal adult world by way of a smuggler’s donkey. And in Amplified, Hind, a deaf karate athlete, must piece herself back together after a moment of violence threatens to unmoor her. Together, these stories sketch the flickers of becoming; the liminal, tender, and sometimes fierce edges where innocence fades, and something new begins to take hold.
These reflective, striking, and effervescent films take us across the Arab world, from the Tunisian borderlands, to the Palestinian sea, and artfully present the courage needed to bridge the shifting tides of childhood.
Content Notice: This film includes scenes involving sexual harassment.
Curated by: Amina Ali and Sally Zarzour
Amplified سكون
Dir. Dina Naser
2024| 19’ | JO, EG, PS | Arabic | Drama
Hind, a young deaf karate athlete, faces abuse at her training center, shaking her confidence. As her world distorts, she must summon the strength to reclaim her power.
Ebb & Flow مدّ وجَزِر
Dir. Nay Tabbara
2024 | 19’ | LB, QA, US | Arabic | Narrative Short
In early 2000s Beirut, 14-year-old Loulwa sneaks out in search of her first kiss, but the day takes an unexpected turn blurring the line between adolescence and reality in a city on edge.
After the Sun وراء الشمس
Dir. Rayane Mcirdi
2024 | 9’ | FR | French | Drama
In the late 1980s, an Algerian family travels from Paris to Marseille, navigating memories and the search for belonging toward a homeland the children have never seen.
A Short Film About Kids فيلم قصير عن الأطفال
Dir. Ibrahim Handal
2023 | 10’ | PS | Arabic | Drama
In a Palestinian refugee camp in Bethlehem, four children embark on their first journey to the sea, navigating the challenges of youth and the constraints of their environment
Nefta Football Club نادي نفطة لكرة القدم
Dir. Yves Piat
2018 | 17’ | FR, TN, DZ | Arabic | Comedy
In the Tunisian desert near the Algerian border, two young brothers discover a donkey wearing headphones and carrying bags of white powder. Unaware of its contents, they bring it home, leading to a series of unexpected events.