The Deminer Tells a Story About Courage and the Fragility of Life in a Warzone

15. 3. 2018

Author: One World

The award for best film in the International competition at One World goes to the Swedish documentery The Deminer directed by Hogir Hirori and Shinwar Kamal (Sweden / 2017/ 82 min). The main protagonist Fakír Berwání decided to dedicate his life to the destruction and elimination of the remnants of war in Kurdistan and he spends his days searching for and deactiving mines and various explosives. He only stops when he loses his leg while working. But after years spent at home, new enemy occurs - the ISIS. Fakír leaves his family and risks his life again. His outstanding dedication and courage persuaded the International Jury at One World, this year hosting lecturer, founder and progamme director of Cinema Politico Ezra Winton, filmmaker and director of Sheffield Doc Fest Elizabeth McIntyre and Iranian filmmaker and Sundance winner Rhoksareh Ghaemmaghami. “Compelling, innovative and passionate, our choice for best film is an exceptional force combining of precious personal archives with contemporary scenes. This is not only a powerful story about war, but about family, memory and loss. Expertly crafted, this documentary depicts the extraordinary dedication of a remarkable hero. For these reasons, we would like not only to acknowledge and celebrate the filmmaker but
the protagonist,” the jury stated.

Documentaries mapping the suffering of people living in warzones in the Middle East have become a sad constant at One World - the conflicts do not cease, but fortunately dedicated filmmakers who attempt to tell the stories do not stop either. In the ocean of images full of suffering, death and destruction, it is not easy to catch the audience attention. The Deminer succeeded in its combination of observational filmmaking, that however manages to offer an intimate insight into the life of the main protagonist and unique work with archive materials shot by the protagonist himself.

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