| Batata | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Noura Kevorkian |
| Written by | Noura Kevorkian |
| Produced by | Paul Scherzer Noura Kevorkian |
| Cinematography | Noura Kevorkian |
| Edited by | Noura Kevorkian Mike Munn |
Production companies | Saaren Films Musa Dagh Productions Six Island Productions |
| Distributed by | Six Island Productions |
Release date |
|
Running time | 125 minutes |
| Countries | Canada Lebanon |
| Languages | Arabic Armenian |
Batata is a Canadian-Lebanese documentary film, directed by Noura Kevorkian and released in 2022.[1] The film is a portrait of Maria, a Syrian woman working in Lebanon whose life is upended by the Syrian civil war and its associated refugee crisis.[2]
The film had originally been conceived in 2009, prior to the outbreak of the war, as a portrait of Maria's father Abu Jamil and farmer Movses (Mousa) Doudaklian, two men who built a close friendship through years of working together on Doudaklian's potato farm in Lebanon despite the history of enmity between Lebanese Christians and Syrian Muslims. As the outbreak of the war turned the farm into a desolate refugee camp, its focus shifted more squarely onto Maria, depicting her determination to keep her family safe and united in the face of the larger forces that threatened to destroy them.[2]
- ^ Jim Slotek, "Hot Docs '22: Batata Director on Life at a Lebanese Potato Farm/Refugee Camp through Syria and ISIS". Original Cin, April 25, 2022.
- ^ a b Marc Glassman, "Batata Review: An Extraordinary Work Ten Years in the Making". Point of View, May 4, 2022.