Mohamed is a hardened shepherd living in rural Tunisia with his wife and two sons. Mohamed is deeply shaken when his oldest son Malik returns home after a long journey with a mysterious new wife. Tension between father and son rises over three days until reaching a breaking point.

Interview with Director Meryam Joobeur

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

There are times a film is derived from a very clear idea and intention and there are times where a film comes together serendipitously, almost willed to life by outside forces, which was the case for Brotherhood. The journey of Brotherhood started with a chance meeting with two red-haired Tunisian brothers, Malek and Chaker, in the middle of nowhere in February 2016. The two brothers were leading a flock of sheep across a lush green hillside when I spotted them. I had been aimlessly location scouting for days for another project but had a strong impulse to stop my car the moment I made eye contact with them. I asked the brothers if I could take their photograph but they refused so I drove away. However, this chance encounter deeply marked me; the contrast of their unique faces filled with freckles against the green landscape.

I then learned that a neighbouring town Sejnan had experienced a surge of radicalization post the Tunisian revolution in 2011 that ousted the dictator Ben Ali. A higher than average percentage of men from the region had gone to Syria. This knowledge and the encounter with the brothers became the basis for Brotherhood. I knew I wanted to address this social issue through the intimate lens of one family and I also knew that I wanted the brothers to act in the film. So… A year later I went searching for the brothers. The chances of finding them were particularly slim because I didn’t know their names nor exactly where I had found them. To add to the dilemma, I only had one day to find them before I left the country. The hours passed by with no avail and my determination began to waver. Finally, luck struck and I passed the exact spot we had encountered the year before. A disgruntled shepherd pointed out their house and I landed at their doorstep with the script for Brotherhood. With some convincing, they agreed to be part of the film along with their little brother Rayene.

Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?

For anyone looking for a nuanced and different perspective of the Arab/Muslim world than what is usually presented in the headlines then Brotherhood is for you.

I grew up in the US in a post-9/11 world. I witnessed how the perspective in North America on the Muslim/Arab world shifted in a drastic and negative way. At times I felt that the Western world saw us as subhuman, that we don’t feel pain or trauma in the same way when in reality the Muslim world has suffered the most causalities because of religious radicalization. This shift disturbed me because I am very attached to my Tunisian roots and the humanity I see in my grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, second cousins. I made Brotherhood with a lot of love as a way to also reinstate our humanity.

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

Brotherhood takes complex themes- radicalization, the difficulty communication, father/son bonds, loyalty- and explores them in the intimate context of one Tunisian family with the goal of resonating on a universal level.

Bringing the universal into the personal has always been a cornerstone to my filmmaking.

How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?

The cast of Brotherhood is comprised of a mix of professional actors and non-actors so the script evolved a lot on set as I collaborated with the actors to bring nuance and authenticity to the characters. A lot of the dialogue changed during shooting and new scenes were formed as inspired by the environment and my collaborators.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

The reception thus far has been really touching because audiences both at home and abroad felt challenged and moved by Brotherhood. I sensed a keen interest from audiences to know more about the characters and their world. I was asked after a screening in a Tunisian juvenile detention center, ‘why does the film pose many questions but doesn’t reveal answers?’ In a high school in Park City Utah, American students wanted to know the relationship of Tunisians to religion. These types of questions led to meaningful discussions about the social and emotional complexities of the narrative and opened minds to how the Arab/ Muslim world has suffered from the rise of radicalization.

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

I think what has surprised me the most has been how the film has resonated beyond the Arab or western world. It confirmed to me how much audiences seek art that breaks stereotypes of different communities and cultures.

What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?

I'm hoping that diverse audiences will be able to access Brotherhood through this platform.

Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?

I would love for journalists to amplify the message of Brotherhood.

What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?

My hope is that Brotherhood can humanize the Arab/ Muslim world to more audiences and also inspire viewers to have the difficult conversations within their own families that my characters failed to have.

What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?

What is the father's journey in the film?

Would you like to add anything else?

For any questions about the film feel free to message us on Brotherhood’s Facebook page.

What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?

We are in the midst of adapting Brotherhood into a feature version!

Interview: September 2019

We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela

Brotherhood

Length: 25:00

Director: Meryam Joobeur

Producer: Habib Attia (Tunisia/Cinetelefilms), Sarra Ben-Hassen, Maria Gracia Turgeon (Canada/Midi la nuit), Meryam Joobeur, Annick Blanc

Writer: Meryam Joobeur

About the writer, director and producer:

Tunisian-American writer/director MERYAM JOOBEUR is a graduate of Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema in Montréal. She is currently developing three feature films including the feature version of Brotherhood and has participated in the Berlinale Talent Lab (2016) TIFF Talent Lab (2016) and the Rawi Screenwriter’s Lab (2016).

Key cast: Salha: Salha Nasraoui, Mohamed: Mohammed Houcine Grayaa, Malek: Malek Mechergui, Chaker: Chaker Mechergui, Rayene: Rayene Mechergui, Reem: Jasmin Lazid.

Facebook: Brotherhood