iPhone Memory
Fall Grants 2016 - Development Stage
Mahdi Ali Ali / Feature Narrative / Qatar / Original Language: Arabic, French / Interests: Social Issues, Docufiction
Synopsis
This docu-fiction uses the device of a stolen iPhone to depict the struggles of several Parisians, both born-and-bred and immigrants, whose layered gazes generate a map of the multi-faceted French capital. we discovers images of the owner and his pregnant wife preparing to welcome their child into their world. In a teenage gypsy girl’s hands, the iPhone captures snaps of her bohemian family’s lifestyle in Paris – but then the phone is stolen again. Now it is in the possession of a teenage Syrian refugee, who plunges us into his universe as he documents his wanderings around the arrondissements with spontaneous images of himself and those he meets along the way. These photos and short videos unveil the mysterious lives of the people of Paris, as well as the refugees who have settled in Paris to find a better life.
Credits
- Director
- Mahdi Ali Ali
- Screenwriter
- Mahdi Ali Ali
About the Director
Mahdi Ali Ali (Mahdi Al-Sharshani Ali) is a Qatari filmmaker who is charged with the training and education of filmmakers. Since joining the Doha Film Institute, he has successfully worked to provide filmmakers in Qatar with comprehensive learning initiatives led by the industry's major players. Ali was also the executive producer and supervisor for more than 30 short films that have been produced by the institute. He holds an MFA from EICAR, the International Film School of Paris, and has directed, produced, and written short films including ‘Champs Elysées, I Love You’ (2009) and ‘The Gulf Habibi’ (2011), as well as others for the Al Jazeera Documentary Channel and Al Jazeera Children's Channel.