With his provocative question, “why is the killing of a million a lesser crime than the killing of an individual?”, Raphael Lemkin changed the course of history. An extraordinary testament to one man’s perseverance, the Sundance award-winning film Watchers of the Sky examines the life and legacy of the Polish-Jewish lawyer and linguist who coined the term genocide. Before Lemkin, the notion of accountability for war crimes was virtually non-existent. After experiencing the barbarity of the Holocaust firsthand, he devoted his life to convincing the international community that there must be legal retribution for mass atrocities targeted at minorities. An impassioned visionary, Lemkin confronted world apathy in a tireless battle for justice, setting the stage for the creation of the International Criminal Court.

Inspired by Samantha Power’s Pulitzer Prize-winning book A Problem From Hell, this multi-faceted documentary interweaves Raphael Lemkin’s struggle with the courageous efforts of four individuals keeping his legacy alive: Luis Moreno Ocampo, Chief Prosecutor of the ICC; Samantha Power, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations; Ben Ferencz, a former Nuremberg prosecutor still tenaciously lobbying the UN for peace; and Rwandan Emmanuel Uwurukundo, UN Refugee Agency Field Director in Chad. Alternating live interviews with rare archival footage and striking animation, Watchers of the Sky illuminates the compassion and bravery of these humanitarians and powerfully demonstrates the ability of global activism to give a voice to the silent victims of genocide.

Directed by: Edet Belzberg
Produced by: Amelia Green-Dove and Kerry Propper
Country: USA
Year: 2014
Runtime: 120′

Cinema for Peace is a non-profit organisation based in Berlin that aims to raise awareness for the social relevance of films, and to make active use of the influence of film on the perception and resolution of social, political and humanitarian challenges.

The Frontline Club is delighted to partner with Cinema for Peace to bring you a night of short films illuminating the experiences of refugees and displaced persons.

Cinema for Peace is a non-profit organisation based in Berlin that aims to raise awareness for the social relevance of films, and to make active use of the influence of film on the perception and resolution of social, political and humanitarian challenges. Since 2002, the group has been inviting filmmakers, humanitarian and human rights activists, and public figures to its annual awards ceremony in Berlin to honour a selection of cinematic works on humanitarian and environmental issues.

The programme will comprise international short documentaries, narrating the personal experiences and journeys of refugees, asylum seekers and stateless and internally displaced persons from several areas across the world and representing multiple environmental and humanitarian issues.

This screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Sharron Ward.

The lineup:

MY ALEPPO
Director: Melissa Langer
2015 / 18 min / USA
http://melissalanger.com/

The young Abdullah family fled the Syrian civil war and settled in Pretoria, South Africa. There, in their little one-room apartment, the Internet is all that connects them with Aleppo.

THEN I CAME BY BOAT
Director: Marleena Forward
2014 / 11 min / Australia
https://marleenaforward.wordpress.com/

Tri and his family escaped by boat from Vietnam to Australia. Now he has found a way to say thank you to Australia.

A LIFE ON HOLD
Director: Marc Silver & Nick Francis
2013 / 6 min / UK
http://www.marcsilver.net/projects/a-life-on-hold.php

When the 2011 war broke out in Libya, thousands of refugees from countries such as Somalia, Sudan, and Eritrea were forced to flee for their lives. They are now waiting in refugee camps along the Tunisian and Egyptian borders – unable to return home due to war or persecution, unable to return to Libya due to ongoing violence and discrimination.

RESIDENT ALIEN
Director: Naiara Eizaguirre-Paulos
2015 / 17 min / USA/Spain
http://www.naiaraeizaguirre.com/

15-year-old Carlos saw his best friend shot dead in front of him in Honduras and escaped gang violence by fleeing to his grandmother in the U.S., but his undocumented status leaves him vulnerable to deportation.

SYRIA: HIDDEN WAR ON WOMEN
Director/Producer: Sharron Ward
2015 / 7 min / UK / Channel 4 News
www.katalystproductions.co.uk

As the Syrian war enters its fifth year, the pressures on displaced families have caused a dramatic rise in violence against women. But domestic abuse is a taboo subject in Syrian society and the true scale of the problem is unknown. Violence against women is the hidden war on women in Syria. Filmmaker Sharron Ward gained rare access to brave Syrian refugee women in Jordan & Lebanon who spoke out in their own words about their experiences of forced child marriage, domestic violence and other gender based violence.