In this spirited, staunchly humanistic film we follow five youths, Palestinian refugees living in the 50-year-old camp of Yarmouk in Syria, where rooms are left to leak and living quarters stack shoddily one upon the other. For these third-generation refugees on the cusp of adulthood, a place to call home eludes them—but they yearn for it just the same. Filming over three years, director Axel Salvatori-Sinz intimately captures the lives and unshakable bonds of friendship formed in the camp, the dashed aspirations and the ceaseless frustrations born of sanctions. Dotted with quieter moments of youthful listlessness, convivial card games and afternoon tea on balmy rooftops, The Shababs of Yarmouk finds vibrancy and grace among hardship. As one man wonderfully exclaims, “When fate’s your foe, decide to laugh rather than cry!”

Screening with short film Mig (Dir: Thaer Al Sahli, 2013), a searing yet poetic look at the Syrian regime’s use of MiGs against civilians in Yarmouk as punishment for sheltering displaced Palestinian and Syrians. Followed by a Q&A with The Shebabs of Yarmouk director Axel Salvatori-Sinz.

Ticket prices: £5.50 full / £4.00 concessions.

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