Brothers

The film tells the story of a nine-year-old child living in France after fleeing the war in Syria with his family by crossing the sea. His connection to his homeland surfaces through memories that intermittently visit him, serving as the narrator of his journey—from the outbreak of the war in Syria to his arrival and life in France. Divided into four segments, the film traces the distinct stages of refuge and their causes, culminating in his reaching and integrating into a host country. Aimed at young, non-Arabic-speaking audiences, the film offers a glimpse into the real experiences of countless refugees who lost their homeland to war, introducing them to the harsh realities faced by displaced people worldwide. It also speaks to the nations that have opened their doors to refugees, often unaware that these individuals and communities carry with them the weight of wars and years of fear. These are people who escaped killing, slaughter, and homelessness; the image seen today is of someone who might be met with superficial understanding as a refugee, but whose deeper truth—a person forced into exile by war through a journey marked by humiliation, displacement, hunger, and oppression—demands greater empathy.

Script and story development

In the pre-production phase of Further Behind, we took on the task of crafting a story rooted in the workshops held with participants from the Syrian refugee communities in northern Lebanon’s camps. Following these sessions, we worked with the rich, detailed drawings produced by the participants, which vividly captured the daily struggles of life in the camps ranging from a long list of challenges like scarce resources to overcrowded conditions. To shape these insights into a cohesive narrative, we conducted extensive research, ultimately building the story around two children from the camps whose enduring friendship unfolds as they grow up together. The film centers on the memory of one character, now an adult, reflecting on his childhood in the camp as his wife prepares to give birth to their first child. Through his recollections, we follow the two young friends as they invent creative solutions to improve life in their harsh surroundings undaunted by a reality that resists easy fixes, they persistently strive to make things better.