Syrian refugee documentary to screen at Troesh center

  Arts+Culture  

RIVERSIDE, Calif. – La Sierra University and the World Affairs Council of Inland Southern California will host a screening of the documentary film “Dalya’s Other Country” which portrays the challenges faced by a displaced Syrian girl and her mother in Los Angeles.

Syrian teenager Dalya, displaced by war from her home city of Aleppo, tries to fit in at an all-girls Catholic high school in Los Angeles. Her story is told in the documentary, "Dalya's Other Country." (Photos: Anne Etheridge)
Syrian teenager Dalya, displaced by war from her home city of Aleppo, tries to fit in at an all-girls Catholic high school in Los Angeles. Her story is told in the documentary, "Dalya's Other Country." (Photos: Anne Etheridge)
Dalya, right, and her mother, Rudayna.
Dalya, right, and her mother, Rudayna.
Dalya and her family celebrate her graduation from her Catholic high school.
Dalya and her family celebrate her graduation from her Catholic high school.
Julia Meltzer, award-winning producer and director of "Dalya's Other Country."
Julia Meltzer, award-winning producer and director of "Dalya's Other Country."
Mustafa Zeno, filmmaker and co-producer of "Dalya's Other Country."
Mustafa Zeno, filmmaker and co-producer of "Dalya's Other Country."

The film will be shown Thursday, April 12, 6:15 - 8 p.m. at the Troesh Conference Center, Zapara School of Business, La Sierra University. A reception will be held at 5:15 p.m. The event will include a student panel question-and-answer session with filmmakers Julia Meltzer and Mustafa Zeno, who is also Dalya’s brother.

“Dalya’s Other Country” premiered last summer on PBS through the Point of View television showcase and is an official selection of the 2017 LA Film Festival. It provides an in-depth look at the struggles of Dalya and her mother, Rudayna as they navigate life in Los Angeles after fleeing war in Aleppo when Dalya was 12 years old.

The film takes viewers on a four-year journey as Dalya navigates teenage life in Southern California and enrolls as the only Muslim at a Catholic high school for girls. Meanwhile, her mother deals with a divorce and greater independence. Both must adjust to an unfamiliar American lifestyle while maintaining their religious and cultural identities, a process that is tested by the political stresses of the 2016 presidential campaign.

Zeno, who was raised in Aleppo, is a filmmaker and photographer who was born in Los Angeles where he now lives. He shepherded his family through the complicated resettlement process in the United States. Zeno co-produced “Dalya’s Other Country” and recently produced an interactive documentary titled “KTown’92” that explores the 1992 Los Angeles riots through the stories of greater Koreatown.

Meltzer, who is director and producer of “Dalya’s Other Country” is an award-winning filmmaker who creates films about women and Islam in the U.S. and abroad. Her work has been exhibited at the Toronto International Film Festival and the Rotterdam International Film Festival. She is a recipient of numerous grant awards including a John Simon Memorial Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship.

The screening of “Dalya’s Other Country” is co-sponsored by La Sierra University’s departments of History, Politics & Sociology and Film & Television Production.

“‘Dalya’s Other Country’ is an important film that provides a window into the growing Syrian diaspora in this country, who, like other Arab immigrants, are trying to find belonging within the prevailing politics of exclusion,” said Ken Crane, associate professor of sociology and anthropology. “The way the film accomplishes this is not by preaching to us but by patiently walking with a teenage Muslim girl through her experience of leaving Aleppo, her parents’ divorce, and her all-girl Catholic high school.”

Admission is $15-$20. For registration, discounts and information visit https://wacinlandsocal.org or call 909-558-7446. La Sierra University is located at 4500 Riverwalk Parkway, Riverside, Calif. A campus map is available at lasierra.edu/campus-map/.

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