Cannes Market Dailies

On Sunday evening, the International Emerging Film Talent Association honoured the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) with an event dedicated to raising awareness and support for refugees. Cannes is just one out of multiple stops on the UNHCR’s “world tour". The tour's program is designed to show solidairty with refugees and to share testimonials of now-settled refugees. From job fairs in Canada to delivering messages to young children in Turkey, the UNHCR team introduces hundreds of people to individuals like Mohammed Badran, who found refuge in the Netherlands after leaving his home country of Syria.

This year, the UNHCR brought two viewing opportunities to the festival. Earlier this weekend, the film “Beyond the Raging Sea” by Marco Orsini was shown to audiences. It follows the tale of Omar Samra and Omar Nour as they compete in the world’s most difficult open sea race. The movie takes the young men's challenge and contrasts it to the personal "races" that men, women, and children endure when escaping conflict in their home country.  In addition to the film, the Doc Corner held a screening of refugee testimonials, called “Refugees Voices in Film”.  As another method of spreading awareness for refugees, the testimonials allowed viewers to have a personal point of view on the events unfolding in the areas Yemen, Syria, and the Horn of Africa. 

Pictured above, Stephen Pattinson, who runs the communciations for the UNHCR, stands with the online petition to be #WithRefugees. The petition has garnered almost 2 million signatures. If you would like to sign the petition and show your support, go to www.unhcr.org.

Written by: Anna Mancino