Damascus Roof and Tales of Paradise
Saqf Dimashq Wa Hykayat Al Jannah
2010
Film
Production: Aljazeera Documentary Channel
Writer, director, executive producer: Soudade Kaadan
Art director: Nadine Kaadan
Original music composer: Nareg Abajian
D.o.p: Karim Ghorayeb
Sound: Malaz Mhanna
Editing: Soudade Kaadan – Shaza Awada
Associated with 1001 Nights, the storytelling in this film explores aspects of reality and fantasy in the urban myths of Damascus. Children’s fables are an ancient way of indirectly communicating social and political criticism. In Syria, there is a rich tradition of storytelling, fables passed from grandparents to grandchildren. Within the old city of Damascus, just as modernization changes the familiar landscape of the ancient town, there is a risk that these stories, cherished and passed down through generations, will vanish amidst the rubble and disruption of the new city taking shape…
Soudade Kaadan
Soudade Kaadan, born in France in 1979, is a Syrian director living in London since 2020. She finished her degree in theatre criticism at the Higher Institute of Dramatic Arts in Syria and studied filmmaking at Saint Joseph University (IESAV) Lebanon. She has directed and produced documentary films for Al Jazeera Documentary Channel, UNDP and UNICEF, and has made several short films. Her first feature film, The Day I Lost My Shadow (2018), premiered at the 2018 Venice Film Festival and won the Lion of the Future award for best debut film. Her recent short film, Aziza, won the Sundance Grand Jury Prize 2019.