Alaa Hassan

Photographer Filmmaker
   
Location: NYC | Berlin
Nationality: Syria | US
Biography: Alaa Hassan is a Syrian/American artist and documentarian. He started his photography work in 2006 and later developed an interest in filmmaking and audio-visual art.  Alaa’s work is concerned with the issues of political prosecution,... MORE
Private Story
Topography
Copyright Alaa Hassan 2024
Updated May 2016
Haya and Muhammad are childhood friends. After their town of Raqqa is invaded by ISIS, they leave the war-torn Syria to Turkey. Only to part again. Haya decides to go back to Raqqa and Muhammad escapes to Europe.

We are creating a feature length non-fiction film based on their stories. This 12 minute video is a summary of the material we have already. More is available upon request.

If we are fortunate to win the grant we'll put it into our production operation, precisely filming in Europe this summer, both in Germany and France.

The material I received from them are what we now refers to as the bubble. The event's bubble, the GoPpro bubble and the undercover filming bubble.

Now that they both are in Europe. We want to continue their story and film what's outside the bubble.

The Topography of terror is a museum in Berlin that documents the detention of jewish people by nazis, Muhammad will be reflecting on his own 5 detentions there. Exploring the history of war and how to move on from it.

When Muhammad was in the Balkan's forest, his memories from detention came flashing back. "Ultimate freedom of the forest was extremely similar to the solitary confinement, basic instinct takes over and every man is for himself" Muhammad said in a letter to Haya right after arriving in Europe.

While we will be filming Haya alone in Paris and then with her family who moved to a very conservative muslim part of France. As if she never escaped, the terrorist attacks in Paris haunt her. "I felt fear for the first time when Charlie Hebdo happened, and then I felt all the fear that was blocked while going after ISIS". Haya went to Raqqa to film ISIS in their face, she is outspoken against them, very confrontational and provocative. But France is not her territory.

Haya is redefining basic concepts. Her view of her own being changed after having to cover her body in Raqqa. Her view of Home was challenged by the fact that her home town has radically changed and by the fact that her mother recreated their Raqqa home in France.
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