Syrian director Feras Fayyad was nominated for an Academy Award this year in the Best Documentary Film category for The Cave. In 2018 he was nominated in the same category for Last Men in Aleppo,following volunteer rescue teams in the heart of Aleppo after five years of war.
The background of The Cave is the same – the war in Syria. But this time Fayyad follows doctors working in an underground hospital – the Cave – as they try to save lives in this hostile environment. Fayyad focusses particularly on the paediatrician and chief physician, Dr. Amina Ballour, and her colleagues Samaher and Dr. Alaa: three women insisting on their right to work in the same way as men.
Trailer for The Cave
Amina Ballour grew up in eastern Ghouta, just outside Damascus. As a child, she wanted to become an engineer. When her family refused, she chose a medical career. After finishing her studies, she began to treat the wounded in eastern Ghouta, but faced with the constant bombardment of medical facilities, the hospital staff had literally to go underground. Between 2013 and 2018 Amina Ballour worked underground in theCave, fighting shortages of supplies and widespread sexism. In 2016, she became the Cave’s director.
She accepted the presence of the Syrian director in her hospital on one condition: never let the cameras prevent treatment. For her, “the film’s main objective was to tell the truth because at the time we thought none of us would survive.”
After she had viewed a rough cut she asked Fayyad about his editorial choices: “I asked him where are my children; the children who lost their legs, who lost their hands?” He replied that many of the images were too traumatic to be shown. We had to show the wider struggles of the Syrian people.
For Dr. Ballour, the film is an opportunity to encourage young women to fight against sexism in Syrian society. Through her example she hopes to encourage young women to engage in professions traditionally reserved for men.
When the hospital closed in 2018, Amina Ballour had to flee to Turkey. From her new position she is campaigning for women’s rights. She works in particular for an association raising funds for women leaders in war zones, at the same time trying to offer an education for girls in war-torn countries.
Sources :
http://www.allocine.fr
https://aawsat.com
https://www.francetvinfo.fr
https://www.nationalgeographic.com
