Refugee Week 2023: “Ayman” and “Matar” film screening

Refugee Week 2023: “Ayman” and “Matar” film screening

Since migrants telling their stories to challenge prejudice and effect positive change is at the heart of what we do here at Migrant Voice, it made perfect sense this Refugee Week to screen the short films of two award-winning filmmakers who are doing just that.

A diverse group joined our film screening in partnership with the University of Westminster and WaterBear on Monday 19 June. Participants watched two powerful short films on asylum, AYMAN and MATAR, followed by a discussion and Q&A with the films’ directors and writers, Hassan Akkad and Ayman Alhussein, who both fled Syria and sought asylum here in the UK.

The two films shown addressed experiences of the crossing and from Calais and what life is really like for asylum seekers here in London. After they were shown, our London Network Worker Ismail Moussa gave an overview of the current situation on the ground, drawing on our latest report on the conditions of asylum seekers in the UK. “No rest, no security” found filthy, unsanitary conditions in asylum hotel accommodation, racist abuse from staff and long waiting times that keep people in limbo for years.

Migrant Voice director Nazek Ramadan then introduced the conversation with Hassan Akkad and Ayman Alhussein. The two filmmakers talked about shooting the films and how their own experiences – in particular, Ayman’s – shaped the stories. 

AYMAN is a documentary-style short film about his own journey from Calais to the UK, while MATAR is the fictional story of a young asylum seeker who does his best to find a way to survive while he waits for a decision on his application. Matar, the main character, works as a delivery worker – just like real-life Ayman did soon after he received his refugee status.

“The dehumanising language that’s being used now around asylum seekers is insane,” Hassan Akkad said. “Those demonised the most are young men, as if young men were not deserving of protection and freedom. That’s why we wanted to make a film about a young single man from a country that we don’t name. We don’t say he’s Syrian or Afghan, we wanted to veer off this refugee hierarchy.”

“Seeing how refugees are being talked about in the media I used to say, ‘This is not true, we’re just normal human beings who want to live a normal life’,” Ayman Alhussein said as he explained why he chose to make films about asylum seekers and refugees. “It was frustrating, reading about refugees and how we are portrayed. This is what I want to do now, work with charities to make short films telling people’s stories.”

Both Ayman and Hassan emphasised the importance of telling ordinary stories. Having both worked on the very successful The Swimmers on Netflix, which tells the story of two Syrian sisters who seek safety in Europe, both filmmakers could see “a problem in portraying refugees as superheroes,” Hassan went on. “It hijacks the reality that we’re like anyone: some of us are nice, some of us not so much. We’re just human.”

The conversation then moved on to the UK’s approach to asylum. “Britain doesn’t have a refugee crisis – we’ve invented one,” Hassan said, as the number of asylum seekers and refugees in the UK is much lower compared to other countries in and outside Europe. The current backlog and the inhumane conditions asylum seekers are kept in are deliberate, the two men said. “Asylum seekers are completely dependent on the charities now, like Migrant Voice and Choose Love, and the government knows that,” Ayman concluded.

When the discussion was opened to the floor, some members of the audience pointed out how male-heavy both films were, with women only cast as minor characters. Hassan answered that while it was true, it was due to the type of story the film told (“There are women who work in food delivery but it’s mostly men”). Both filmmakers are currently working on projects that centre on women as the main characters, they said, but in this case they decided to focus on a young male to counter the rhetoric around this demographic.

One of the final questions was from a student who happened to be passing by the event and had been so moved and inspired by it, wanted to ask how ordinary people, who aren’t normally engaged in the migration debate, can get involved, learn more and support migrants and asylum seekers. The answer, from all three panellists, was clear: join a charity or movement as a volunteer, spread the word and start conversations about migration within your community or even at the dinner table.

“What we’re doing here is amazing, but we’re preaching to the choir,” Hassan said: what we need to do is expand these conversations from our bubbles into wider society and reach more people who aren’t necessarily informed about the current situation. Only then will we be able to create meaningful change and a more welcoming country.

To help us spread the word and reach more people, you can watch and share AYMAN and MATAR for free on WaterBear.