LALGAM - portraits of survival

A garden that means more than a garden

2023

Taleb, who came to a refugee camp at the age of five in 1975 and returned there after his studies abroad, tells of his life as a displaced person, his gratitude for the reception and support in Algeria, and his hope that the Sahrawis may one day return to their homeland. For Taleb, this hope drives him to actively prepare for better times: as a graduate in agricultural sciences, he conceived a successful small-scale closed-loop economy in a desert under the most difficult conditions, producing enough food for self-sufficiency.

Bil'in Habibti

2006

The Israeli filmmaker Shai Corneli Polak records the building of the 'security wall' through Palestinian territory at the village of Bil'in. The villagers protest mostly peacefully, while the Israeli army doesn't react peacefully. By now the Israeli High Court has ruled that the building of the wall was illegal.

To See El Aaiún

2020

In the depths of the Algerian desert the Sahrawi people have been dwelling in the refugee camps for over 40 years. Camps gradually turned into settlements, named after towns in their homeland Western Sahara. One of them is called El Aaiún.

Humaná, feeding wilayas

2015

Humaná tells two stories, the daily life of a Sahrawi refugee and food they receive to live and hard process of distributing hundreds of tons of food daily. From the voice of Najla and Jesus primarily, we´ll see the difficulties and as the project AECID and Attsf proposed in 2005, was a turning point for all food arrived on time for every Sahrawi.

The flowers of the wall

2013

With help from the city of Gavá, the Sahrawi painter and artist Mohamed Moulud Yeslem, presents here in the city his project “a flower for every landmine.” Through this initiative, he has mobilized schools, civil society associations, other entities and even private citizens to make flowers and bring them to be planted next to the landmines that hide the world’s longest wall, a wall constructed by Morocco in Western Sahara and which has reaped division among the Sahrawi people for over 33 years. In all, they have planted 3500 flowers, but they have also learned that they are not just planting flowers for Western Sahara, but to fight against all walls or other buriers to humankind, wherever they may be.

Saharauiya

2012

The documentary is about the sahrawi women’s role carries out from all areas in her society and developes within the framework of the refugee camps in Tindouf (Algeria). Sahrawi women who have different jobs tell us through several interviews their vital experiences and share their opinion about the difficult situation that they suffer. In parallel with these interviews the documentary shows us how is a typical day of a sahrawi family in which a girl and her friend live a little story of fantasy.

Sea of sand

2013

This documentary explains the problems of Western Sahara while occupied by Morocco, the territories liberated by the Polisario Front, and the refugee camps in Tindouf (Algeria). 40 years of human rights violations, cultural, human and economic despoliation (fishing, phosphates,...), but also of resistance, fighting back, dignity, solidarity; and most of all, the women’s defining role in the establishment of a forcefully exiled population in one of the most inhospitable places on the planet.

Smara's smile

2012

This is the story of Buyema Abdelfatan, also known as Castro, an ex Saharan soldier that now a days runs a centre for disabled children in the refugee camp of Smara (Tindouf, Algeria). A personal project that has earned him both praise and criticism, but could not continue without his dedication, perseverance and humanitarian aid that he receives.

Thaidina, music in the desert

2009

A documentary that shows the current state of territorial limbo in which the Sahrawi people live through the gaze of those who arrive and leave, those who resist, of the occupiers and the occupieds; a multifaceted view of what is behind the facts.

The mirror bird

2010

Bubisher, as well as being 'the bird of luck', is a word loaded with literary meaning in Spanish in the Sahrawi refugee camps of Tindouf. Seeing the way in which two cultures interact through small stories and tales can is striking and so is the contrast between the resilience of the young female generations and the realities of life in the desert. This documentary paints a picture of a generation of young female Sahrawis.

When the sun came for them

2016

When the Sun Came for Them is a series of interviews with the nomadic Saharawi people in the Western Sahara. They discuss their remarkable history, their poetic life style and their strong morals. They recount the horrific Moroccan invasion, which forced them into the Algerian refugee camps. This is a powerful and unique movie, which not only preserves the Saharawi people’s personal and cultural history as nomads, but also documents what it means to be a “state-less” person. It is a human rights plea to a world, which has been sadly silent on the long time abuse of the Saharawi people. When the Sun Came for Them documents what it means to be a “state-less” person and how after decades of abuse even pacifist Muslims are turned into fighters committed to war. It is a timely and important film. All was shot by a crew of three recent college graduates on two iPads. It is true backpack journalism.

Trump's Unlikely Superfans

2016

Ahead of the U.S. Presidential Elections, Angela Scanlon travels across America to meet some of Donald Trump's most unlikely supporters - including a second-generation Mexican American who wants Trump to build that wall.

Sadig: my Sahrawi friend

2018

Habub and Marcos establish a relationship through “video letters” during the wintertime. Through these videos, we see what daily life is like in the Sahrawi refugee camps and, more importantly, how important the friendship between these two kids is.

Sirocco: Winds of resistance

2016

Drawing from the inspiration of their grandmothers, singer Aziza Brahim and activist Senia Abderhaman wrestle for the independence of their people from a brutal and corporate backed Moroccan regime using culturally derived methods of music, poetry, and nonviolent resistance.

Voyages au centre de la Terre : Dans les pas de Jules Verne

2023