‘Saleem’ highlights mental health of war-torn children in Jordan
Cynthia Madanat Sharaiha’s life-long passion for all things art has manifested itself onto the silver screen.
Although she studied engineering, a combination of the digital revolution and regional upheavals has moved her into making films with a message.
Her latest project, “Saleem,” a 3-D animated feature, has been selected to participate in the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, the movie’s debut festival nomination.
Made with her husband and partner, executive producer
Shadi Sharaiha, and produced by Jordanian company Digitales, along with more than 100 Jordanian and international artists, the flick highlights issues related to children’s mental health through the story of a Middle Eastern child forced to flee his home due to war. During a press conference in Paris, Annecy festival artistic director, Marcel Jean, described the film as “a surprise we did not expect.”
He said: “We were captivated by the sensibility and delicacy of the film. I strongly encourage people to explore the work at the festival this year.”
Deadline reported the selection of “Saleem” for the festival as a “rare participation from the Middle East.”
Sharaiha’s movie was not born out of thin air. Working with mental health experts and seasoned children’s content writers, Digitales produced the “Our Family Life” animation series, a collection of short videos surrounding the Abu Sanad family and addressing social and family themes.
The series became a hit on YouTube amassing 624 million viewers and more than 2 million subscribers.
The arrival in Jordan of more than 1 million refugees fleeing war in Syria, sparked the idea to highlight the mental health problems faced by refugees and displaced children. “Saleem” was chosen out of 3,338 entries from 112 countries to compete in next month’s Annecy festival against 11 other films in the Contrechamp category.
It tells an uplifting and touching story about a nine-year-old boy called Saleem, who lost his father and was forced to flee with his mother, brother, and sister from his war-torn city. His life changes when a pigeon reveals a map that leads him on an adventure.