DEATH WITHOUT MERCY

( 2024 )

Feature Documentary Competition |

United Kingdom

Arabic |

85 min

About the film

On February 6, 2023, a 7.8 earthquake hits a large area of Turkey and Syria. Over 10 days, two Syrian families desperately try to find their loved ones amid devastation and failed government rescue efforts.

Director

Waad AlKateab

Waad Al-Kateab, born in 1991, is a Syrian journalist, producer, cinematographer, andfilm director. She covered the Syrian civil war for Channel 4 in the UK since 2011 andchose to stay and document her life over five years while in Aleppo. She received theInternational Emmy Award, becoming the first Syrian journalist to win this honor. In 2019, she co-directed the film For Sama with Edward Watts, which won multipleinternational awards including the BAFTA award for Best Documentary, and wasnominated for the 92nd Academy Awards (Oscars). Her new films include We Dare toDream (2023) and her latest work, Death Without Mercy (2024).

Producer

Ben de Pear, Lawrence Elman, Hasan Kattan, Sophie Daniel

Production Company

Screenplay

–

Cinematography

Fadi Alhalabi

Editing

Agnieszka Liggett

Sound

Paul Zanders, Nick Clapham

Cast

–

Contacts

International Sales: The Film Collaborative, david@thefilmcollaborative.org

Producer

Ben de Pear, Lawrence Elman, Hasan Kattan, Sophie Daniel

Production Company

Screenplay

–

Cinematography

Fadi Alhalabi

Editing

Agnieszka Liggett

Sound

Paul Zanders, Nick Clapham

Cast

–

Contacts

International Sales: The Film Collaborative, david@thefilmcollaborative.org

More About Film

The Syrian director Waad Al-Kateab skillfully transforms the overarching narrative of the devastating earthquake in Turkey and parts of Syria in 2023 in her stunning documentary Death Without Mercy. She shifts the focus from a mere dramatic portrayal of the natural disaster, which the media emphasizes by reporting the rising death toll, to a cinematic exploration of the psychological scars and pain left in the hearts of the victims’ families and loved ones. Ultimately, she highlights that these “numbers” represent real human beings made of flesh and blood. Moreover, the victims’ recollection of the tragic moments, along with their anxiety and hope for finding their loved ones alive among the rubble, transforms these individuals in the cinematic portrayal into anguished beings racing against time to reach the place where they last saw their loved ones.Waad Al-Kateab embodies the outcomes of the lives of two Syrian families during and after the disaster, conveying meanings that go beyond mere documentation of the tragic event. The death of a Syrian who fled his homeland to escape destruction, only to encounter suffering in the place he believed would bring him refuge, is deeply poignant. It reflects a profound sorrow stemming from two losses: one within his homeland and another beyond its borders. This painful loss lends greater significance to the documentary and reminds the viewer of cinema’s ability to rewind “time” and see the scene from a broader human perspective.The death of innocent individuals fleeing death in their homeland prompts reflection on the fate of those who have lost hope in finding them alive. Cinematically, this requires an investment in everything that embodies this narrative: news reports from television channels, close-up footage of those searching for survivors among the rubble, and video recordings of critical moments that seek to expose the corrupt government officials responsible for exacerbating the consequences of the natural disaster, as well as Turkish merchants who are indifferent to the fates of human lives.Kais Kasim

Producer

Ben de Pear, Lawrence Elman, Hasan Kattan, Sophie Daniel

Screenplay

Cinematography

Fadi Alhalabi

Editing

Agnieszka Liggett

Sound

Paul Zanders, Nick Clapham

Cast

Contact

International Sales: The Film Collaborative, david@thefilmcollaborative.org

More About Film

The Syrian director Waad Al-Kateab skillfully transforms the overarching narrative of the devastating earthquake in Turkey and parts of Syria in 2023 in her stunning documentary Death Without Mercy. She shifts the focus from a mere dramatic portrayal of the natural disaster, which the media emphasizes by reporting the rising death toll, to a cinematic exploration of the psychological scars and pain left in the hearts of the victims' families and loved ones. Ultimately, she highlights that these "numbers" represent real human beings made of flesh and blood. Moreover, the victims’ recollection of the tragic moments, along with their anxiety and hope for finding their loved ones alive among the rubble, transforms these individuals in the cinematic portrayal into anguished beings racing against time to reach the place where they last saw their loved ones.Waad Al-Kateab embodies the outcomes of the lives of two Syrian families during and after the disaster, conveying meanings that go beyond mere documentation of the tragic event. The death of a Syrian who fled his homeland to escape destruction, only to encounter suffering in the place he believed would bring him refuge, is deeply poignant. It reflects a profound sorrow stemming from two losses: one within his homeland and another beyond its borders. This painful loss lends greater significance to the documentary and reminds the viewer of cinema's ability to rewind "time" and see the scene from a broader human perspective.The death of innocent individuals fleeing death in their homeland prompts reflection on the fate of those who have lost hope in finding them alive. Cinematically, this requires an investment in everything that embodies this narrative: news reports from television channels, close-up footage of those searching for survivors among the rubble, and video recordings of critical moments that seek to expose the corrupt government officials responsible for exacerbating the consequences of the natural disaster, as well as Turkish merchants who are indifferent to the fates of human lives.Kais Kasim