OF FATHERS AND SONS

A film by Talal Derki

98min, 2017, Arabic with English Subtitles
Countries of Production: Germany, Syria, Lebanon

Talal Derki returnes to his homeland where he gained the trust of a radical Islamist family, sharing their daily life for over two years.  His camera focuses mainly on the children, providing an extremely rare insight into what it means to grow up with a father whose only dream is to establish an Islamic Caliphate. Osama (13) and his brother Ayman (12) are in the center of the story. They both love and admire their father and obey his words, but while Osama seems to follow the path of Jihad, Ayman wants to go back to school. The film captures the moment when the children have to let go of their youth and are finally turned into Jihadi fighters. No matter how close the war comes—one thing they have already learned: they must not cry.

OF FATHERS AND SONS is Talal’s personal journey through a devastated country and a troubled society, looking for answers to his desperate questions about the future of his country and the future of his family who had to flee into exile.