
Directing
Waad al-Kateab
Born 1991-01-01
Syrian journalist, filmmaker, and activist. Her documentary, For Sama (2019) was nominated for four BAFTAs at the 73rd British Academy Film Awards, winning for Best Documentary, and the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature at the 92nd Academy Awards. Her coverage of the Battle for Aleppo won an International Emmy Award for Current Affairs & News for Channel 4 News. The pseudonymous surname Al-Kateab is used to protect her family.
Acting credits
Behind the camera
8.2A love letter from a young mother to her daughter, the film tells the story of Waad al-Kateab’s life through five years of the uprising in Aleppo, Syria as she falls in love, gets married and gives birth to Sama, all while cataclysmic conflict rises around her. Her camera captures incredible stories of loss, laughter and survival as Waad wrestles with an impossible choice– whether or not to flee the city to protect her daughter’s life, when leaving means abandoning the struggle for freedom for which she has already sacrificed so much.
For Sama
2019
8.2A love letter from a young mother to her daughter, the film tells the story of Waad al-Kateab’s life through five years of the uprising in Aleppo, Syria as she falls in love, gets married and gives birth to Sama, all while cataclysmic conflict rises around her. Her camera captures incredible stories of loss, laughter and survival as Waad wrestles with an impossible choice– whether or not to flee the city to protect her daughter’s life, when leaving means abandoning the struggle for freedom for which she has already sacrificed so much.
For Sama
2019
8.0Unprecedented access to the IOC Refugee Olympic Team before, during and after the 2020 Games, which saw 29 athletes competing in Tokyo, originating from 11 countries, and residing in 13 host nations.
We Dare to Dream
2023
8.0Chronologically assembled from the reports of hundreds of newscasters, cameramen, and civilians representing the days following the tragic event of the February 6, 2023 earthquake in Turkey and Syria.
Death Without Mercy
2024
NRWhen activist Wafa Mustafa's father disappears under Assad's regime, her search for answers becomes a story of memory, identity and resilience.
Maybe Tomorrow
2026