Collective residencies / DIVERSITY POLICIES / Olot
AHMAD ALHAJ
From Friday, 1 November 2019 to Friday, 8 November 2019
Bio
Ahmad is a Syrian filmmaker, film programmer, curator, journalist. founder of WIND CINEMA an emerging France based international film production and Distribution company, born in Al Hassake 1990 He writes for several Arab cultural websites and magazines, meanwhile organizing and programming film manifestations in Turkey and Netherland at Pages book store, in Copenhagen and Sweden at Syrian Doc days festival, in Canada at TAF Toronto Arab film festival and already in Syria before leaving the country. He made a short film in 2015 called “Its only three nails!! Saturn devouring his son” have been showed in more than 100 cities world wild. He got a diploma in finance and practical legal studies from Syria . Currently, based in France as a political refugee.
Project
I carry in the palm of my right hand a small stone, stuck under the skin when I had a car accident 15 years ago. I want to release it.
“100 KG of Sadness and Wind” film resembles this stone, and I deeply want to “release it”!
During my Faber residency I will continue the work on the script of my 1st feature film, where I’m reducing the distance between reality and art, telling my own story by my present body. Rising the question of visibility, subjectivity, identity, dictatorship, love and home.
Appreciated Recognition!.
Not just the time can build a friendship, also these kind of experiences where we touching the stars.
Coming to Olot – Catalonia, everyone of us to work on his personal project for couple of days or weeks, has the desire to share and listen have gave this residency a double value in the context of exact meaning of personal project which means for me, existed to be shared!
I worked on the period of my residency on the 1st feature film script (100 KG of sadness and wind) where I will be in front of the camera and behind of, to tell my own story by my present body, when I’m challenging many questions like subjectivity and objectivity, privacy and public, creativity and originality, dictatorship and freedom, love and home. So when Faber residency gives me a chance to be close to my self to write, to observe, to meditate, to read and to share my ideas and my wills with experts, academics, PhDs, culture activists, artists and real human beings thats means to me (the good life or happy life).
I will put in the credit of the film when it’s done, that it would not have been made without Faber residency’s Recognition, love and appreciation. I would love also to exhibit the film here in Olot when it’s done.
Thanks to all of you Faberers: Gavina, Pepa, Pau… all of you, this is really much appreciated. Thanks also to the team of Hotel Riu Fluvià they were so kind to us.
I also appreciate all the debates, meals, ideas and presentations that I have with all the residents, Warm hugs all!!