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PIFF 42 Official Selection

Still Recording

Directed by Saeed Al Batal, Ghiath Ayoub

Syria, Lebanon, France, Germany, Qatar • 2018 • 120 mins. • In Arabic with subtitles

Showtimes & Past Screenings

The conflict in Syria, under the brutal Assad regime, has raged on for many years with no end in sight; the country torn asunder between military bombings and ISIS machinations. For first-time filmmakers Al Batal and Ayoub, two young men with a love of cinema, the conflict became inescapably intertwined with their lives. During the past seven years, the duo filmed more than 450 hours of life in Douma, a Damascus suburb and epicenter of fighting. Using their footage to craft a deeply compelling, heartbreaking, and infuriating look inside everyday terror, Al Batal and Ayoub show us the harsh reality of life in Syria— an extremely eye-opening experience that should not be missed.

Filmography: First feature

Content warning: scenes of intense, graphic violence and war

Sponsored by World Foods of Portland

Appears in: 42nd Portland International Film Festival, PIFF 42: Documentary Views

The Northwest Film Center recognizes and honors the Indigenous peoples of this region on whose ancestral lands the museum now stands. These include the Willamette Tumwater, Clackamas, Kathlemet, Molalla, Multnomah and Watlala Chinook Peoples and the Tualatin Kalapuya who today are part of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, and many other Native communities who made their homes along the Columbia River. We also want to recognize that Portland today is a community of many diverse Native peoples who continue to live and work here. We respectfully acknowledge and honor all Indigenous communities—past, present, future—and are grateful for their ongoing and vibrant presence.