UN refugee agency holds film festival to observe World Refugee Day

A three-day film festival launched by the UN Refugee Agency to observe World Refugee Day ended in Beijing on Saturday. This year's events are especially poignant as they mark 40 years of the agency's presence in China and its partnership with the Chinese government, UNHCR said.

The film festival opened on Thursday, World Refugee Day, with Kakuma My City, a film that celebrates the diverse nationalities, cultures and dreams in Kenya's Kakuma camp. Through the eyes of a young refugee, it depicted how refugees from countries like Somalia, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo live and thrive with their Kenyan hosts.

"More than 70 million people have been forcibly displaced by war and persecution. The numbers are staggering, but behind every statistic is someone who has survived unimaginable horrors and is working to rebuild their lives," said Sivanka Dhanapala, the refugee agency's representative in China. "This film festival aims to tell these stories of courage and resilience – not just of refugees but also of the host communities that embrace them."

"The film industry has a long tradition of focusing on conflict and displacement, with movies like Schindler's List, Life is Beautiful and Hotel Rwanda," said Zhang Xiaoguang , deputy curator of the China Film Archive, where the event was held. "In recent years, we've eagerly watched the rise of such films coming from outside Hollywood, providing different voices and perspectives on the global challenge of forced displacement."

The closing film was Capharnaum, which won the Jury Prize at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the 2019 Academy Awards. Made in Lebanon, it tackles many social issues affecting Lebanese and refugees alike: Child labor, early marriage, statelessness and poverty. The main character is played by a real-life refugee , Zain Al Rafeaa, who fled Syria with his family in 2012 and tapped on his own experiences for the fictional role.

"Capharnaum was the surprise hit of the year," said Yang Hai, general manager for publicity and promotion at Alibaba Pictures. "This film basically tells the story of a Lebanese child who struggles to grow up with the heavy burden of life, and it is recognized as a realistic film masterpiece. The harsh reality reflected in this film has also caught a lot of attention."