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Aleppo. Notes from the Dark

Feature - 87 min Broadcast - 52 min

Life in Aleppo from the perspective of seven of its residents struggling with the hardships of war

Aleppo. Notes from the Dark The dead lie among the rubble, the streets alive with crossfire. The scenes are familiar, but the actors, unknown. What the media don't show is that these snipers, grenade-slingers, and rifle-waving freedom fighters all have former lives - selling vegetables, repairing refrigerators, and trading women's clothing. From the tragic to the mundane, this powerful doc gives Aleppians space to tell their own stories. A unique record of the life of a city.
"God willing, after the uprising I'm going back to my old job", says Mohammad Sayed, a journalist working for the Aleppo Media Centre. "I used to repair mobile phones. Journalism is my duty, but it is not my profession." His life, like everyone living here, has been on hold for the last two years. He now documents the horror that has become their new day-to-day. "I saw a severed hand with moving fingers", he recalls of the aftermath of one of Aleppo's daily explosions. "I saw half a man crying out."

Many former protesters have taken up arms against Bashar al-Assad's mercenary forces, but even those without weapons must fight for survival. Tanks prowl the ruins of the city's ancient squares, and snipers line the rooftops. "They will sometimes bet a glass of tea or a cigarette - 'Can you shoot that woman or not?'", explains Abu Ahmed, a rebel unit commander. Their cruel games make simply crossing the street a nightmarish gauntlet. But people still try. It's the only way to get food, and thousands are on the verge of starvation. "Life here is slow dying. You die a thousand times a day around here."

Tucked away in basements and alleyways, unsung benefactors do their best to bring help to the most needy. Imam Qasim delivers alms to the poorest suburbs, while Abu Mahiya bakes bread for free. Solidarity, and a consummate faith, is all they have left. "I'm willing to accept Mujahideen, Alawis, Druzc, Christians and others", declares Abu Obaida, an FSA combatant. "But only those who love our land, and whose actions are guided by humanity."

This remarkable tapestry of tales records the lives of seven ordinary citizens living in extraordinary circumstances, as they talk openly about the darkness of despair, and the dream of its ending. "I don't have any dreams. I don't. I wish my dad could live in peace, that's all."

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Laurel Winner - Special Award BZ WBK, HumanDOC International Documentary Film Festival 2014, Poland
Laurel Winner - Grand Prix for Best Film, HumanDOC International Documentary Film Festival 2014, Poland
Laurel Winner - Audience Award, WATCH DOCS 2014
Laurel Official Selection, Festival delle Storie, 2014
Laurel Official Selection, Festival des Libertes 2014
Laurel Official selection, Prague One World Film Festival 2014
Laurel Official Selection, Polish Film Festival in America, 2014
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TRANSCRIPT

The Producers


WOJCIECH SZUMOWSKI
Director, screenwriter, producer, Szumowski has produced close to 200 documentary films working for TVP (Polish public television), TVN and as an independent director. He is a recipient of many awards and honours. He has served on the jury of film festivals and competitions and is the Executive Director of Studio Szumowski.


MICHAL PRZEDLACKI
Przedlacki is a humanitarian aid worker, reporter and photographer. Over the last ten years he has been documenting the everyday life of residents of areas affected by wars and natural disasters. Prior to filming, he spent several months in Northern Syria delivering humanitarian aid in Aleppo and Idlib provinces.

Making The Film


As a global society, we have been becoming increasingly indifferent to the fate of another human being. And since Iraq we have entered into a world of numbers, statistical narration of death. Now death and despair are pushed out from television screens, because the images are considered to be too brutal to be shown. This is however the real image of war. The filmmakers shot Aleppo. Notes From the Dark in the bombarded city for 44 days, in the summer of 2013.

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