exile & empire

exile & empire is an essay-driven documentary film on Iraq, past and present, seen through a series of short films. Iraqi-Canadian filmmaker Duraid Munajim was originally making a film focusing on Iraqi exiles, until world events gradually spun out of control culminating in the war and its direct aftermath. The filmmaker decides to shoot the last leg of his film in Iraq, arriving to the conquered capital soon after the fall. The shorts range in style, from the more typical ‘talking head’ interview film, to the more experimental - films told with images and sound. Images captured using stills, super 8, 16mm, 35mm and mini dv. Overall, the film provides the viewer with a window into Iraq from the point of view of an Iraqi. The sorrows of the past, the loneliness of exiles, the destruction of war, the ironies of the occupation. (Fantasy Filmfest)