A winner at Sundance Film Festival of both the Audience Award and Directing Award in the World Cinema Documentary section, Itab Azzam and Jack MacInnes’ One in a Million captures a family’s journey from Syria to Germany and back again across the span of a decade. Now set for a release beginning October 21, the first trailer has arrived from Frontline.
Here’s the synopsis: “Filmed over ten years, ONE IN A MILLION follows Israa from childhood to adulthood on an extraordinary journey from Syria to Germany — and back again. We first meet her at age 11 as she and her family are preparing to cross the Aegean Sea, risking everything in search of safety and a better life in Europe. What unfolds is a deeply personal chronicle of war, exile and heartbreak, as Israa grows up navigating adolescence, identity and belonging far from the home she was forced to leave. As Israa settles into life in Germany, new freedoms collide with the stabilizing pull of Syrian traditions, testing bonds and reshaping her sense of self.”
I said in my Sundance review, “We’re first introduced to Israa at age 11, circa 2015, and witness her family’s harrowing journey by sea from Syria to Greece, then through multiple countries to the ultimate haven of Germany. Before they leave, children note how they are not scared to die while we see the unforgettable image of small toddlers putting on orange life vests. But during the voyage, two kids succumb to the cold, traumatizing Israa as her normally bubbly personality is shaken. Eventually arriving in Germany less than a third into the film, the rest of the journey is not one of physical distance but emotional obstacles, as the next ten years of assimilation deeply affect every fabric of their family unit. One in a Million opens to new perspectives: we start hearing more from Israa’s father Tarek and, eventually, her mother Nisreen as conflicted feelings of adhering to Syrian tradition start clashing with popular culture, growing up, and romance.”
Watch below.
The post One in a Million Trailer: Sundance Winner Captures a Decade-Long Journey first appeared on The Film Stage.
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