The Film: Salam Neighbor
With the support of a local production company and the UNHCR, Chris and Zach are the first filmmakers registered and given a their own tent inside Za’atari, one of the world’s largest refugee camps on the Syrian – Jordanian border. With more refugees today than any time in the last century, at first the filmmakers are paralyzed by the sheer scale the world’s most pressing humanitarian crisis, and their own American misperceptions about who they are sharing the camp with. With Salam (Hello) Neighbor, Chris and Zach create an honest and poignant East meets West story by focusing on the personal relationships they develop with various members of the camp, and though their experiences, humanize an overwhelming crisis.
Every person who watches this film can play an active role in dispelling fear and unlocking the resources needed to create a positive future, not only for refugees, but for the entire region, and for our the new immigrants who have made the incredibly difficult journey to Vancouver. This is a story that encourages us not only to be global citizens, but global neighbours as well.