The Syrian film “Lost Childhood”, which focuses on the condition of children in Idleb, has won first prize in the medium-length television film category (30 minutes) at the DIG Festival in Italy.
The film’s producers, a group of Syrian activists, said that the film highlights the phenomenon of child labor in the northwestern Syrian city of Idleb. In that city, children have been forced by difficult humanitarian conditions to work in harsh occupations and abandon their studies.
The French channel Arte published a summary explanation of the film, which is shown on its YouTube channel. The film explanation stated that Idleb, which is besieged by Syrian regime forces and their Russian allies, does not receive any humanitarian assistance. Instead, the most vulnerable families are forced to send their children to work to survive.
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“Many of the children left school for work. These children include Hamoudi, 12 years old, who became his family’s breadwinner, and his brother Kermo (9 years old). Both children exhaust themselves working in a garage for a small amount of money. To support their families, however, they are ready to make any sacrifices,” the summary said.
“A team of Syrian journalists followed the children’s daily lives and witnessed the horrors of war from a child’s perspective,” it said.
The film’s producers dedicated the award to “Syrian children, who face the most severe suffering under the regime’s 10-year long, dirty war.”
The film is written and produced by Yaman Khatib, filmed by Fadi al-Halabi, and directed by Suzanne Allant, a French director of Syrian origin.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
