Lebanon, July 2018

The first Summer School was held in Ehden, a remote location in the mountain’s region of Lebanon, to what became a pilot venture in cooperation with the School of Cinema and Audiovisual Directing of ALBA-UOB Lebanese Academy of Fine Arts, Beirut.

“A group of 4 enrolled students and 1 alumnus joined 7 soon-to-be documentary filmmakers from ALBA school for 10 intensive days during the summer holiday. They worked together in groups to make 4 collective documentary films.

Coached by professor Danielle Davie from ALBA and I, the students had encounters with local artists, leaders and residents of the town. They scouted the village and presented a written concept before shooting began.  They filmed for three consecutive days and screened their rough-cut during each evening for an open group discussion.  After two days of editing they came back to Beirut for a public screening at ALBA.

The overall result was good, the films were surprisingly well made – each one with different approach and intentions. One of the things I myself found back enjoying, the complete focus on documentary-making, liberated from the curriculum obligations.

A summer school is without a doubt, a cross-institution, multicultural opportunity for our students and alumni to work together with other soon-to-be filmmakers from different levels, background and culture beyond the DocNomads experience. It is also a change to our teachers, by challenging our limits beyond the borders of Lisbon, Budapest and Brussels.”

Excerpts from Rob Rombout article in DNA Newsletter of Autumn 2018

PARTICIPANTS

DocNomads students & alumni

• Rebecca Tawk
• Sean Van Wert (alumnus)
• Yvonne Nouwen
• Waleed Al Madani

ALBA’s students & alumni

• Carla Noujem
• Chérif Allam (alumnus)
• Joanna Kaï (alumna)
• Léa Skayem
• Maria Ghosh
• Rayanne Abi Raad
• Riwa Philips (alumna)
• Sami Balchion
• Taymour Boulos (alumnus)

Supervisors

• Rob Rombout (DocNomads – LUCA)
• Danielle Davie (ALBA-UOB)

FILMS

• Fugue, a film by Joanna Kaï; Taymour Boulos; Sean Van Wert. 
  It's never easy to say goodbye to a summer love. Especially when external forces threaten to tear apart a relashionship before it has ever begun."Fugue" tells the story of George and Walloun, young lovers in a Small Northern Lebanese town, Ehden. Under the surface of this vacation spot lies a bloody history of violence. In a letter addressed to Walloun, George describes the struggles both will face.
• Polaris, a film by Yvonne Nouwen; Carla Noujem; Sami Balchion.
  Ehden is known as a heavenly place for many Lebanese. But like Polaris in the night sky, a dark memory is still engraved amidst the thriving town-village.
• Lueur imperceptible, a film by Riwa Philips; Chérif Allam; Maria Ghosh
  A stranger reflects on the Lebanese village de Ehden which is compared to the Garden of Eden. He questions the contrast between its beauty and its rough past through vision.
• Turning in circles, a film by Rayanne Abi Raad; Léa Skayem; Waleed Al Madani. 
  Three filmmakers, eager to make a film about Ehden, Lebanon. Diving through constant obstacles that turned their journey into a road trip towards a loop of comical reactions and answers from the citizens of Ehden.