Anwar Film is an independent production entity that includes the films of siblings Raed and Rania Rafei. An homage to our father, Anwar (means “luminous” in Arabic), whose enlightened spirit was a source of inspiration and sometimes antagonism. The world of Anwar Film contains passionate documentaries, docu-dramas, fiction, and experimental films that we have made together and separately. These award-winning films have screened at international festivals and venues around the world like FID Marseille, the Centre Pompidou in Paris, Doc Lisboa, Visions du Réel, and the Pacific Film Archives in Berkeley.

BIOS

Rania Rafei is a Lebanese filmmaker and artist. She directed several TV documentaries covering social and political subjects. She also wrote and directed short fiction films and video essays. Her first feature film 74 The Reconstitution of a Struggle premiered at the FID Marseille International Film Festival (2011) and then was screened in many other film festivals around the world.

She is in the process of making her second feature documentary The Day of Wrath: Tales from Tripoli (expected in 2025).

Raed Rafei is a filmmaker, researcher, and multimedia journalist. Rafei directed award-winning documentaries and experimental films. His films 74 (The Reconstitution of a Struggle), Here I am ... Here You are, Salam and Al-Atlal (The Ruins) have screened at international film festivals and venues like the Centre Pompidou in Paris, Doc Lisboa, Visions du Réel, and the Pacific Film Archives in Berkeley.

He is an Assistant Professor of Film and Media Studies at the University of Pittsburgh. His research focuses on queer cinema in the Arab region and its diasporas. As a journalist, he has worked for international publications like The Los Angeles Times and news outlets like CNN and Al-Jazeera Documentary Channel.

His new feature documentary Tripoli / A Tale of Three Cities will have its world premiere at IDFA in November 2024.

PROJECTS (SELECTION)

The Day of Wrath: Tales From Tripoli

Feature Documentary

Directed, written & edited by Rania Rafei (In Production / Expected in 2025)

The film portrays Tripoli/Lebanon through five revolutionary moments in the history of the city.

TRIPOLI / A TALE OF THREE CITIES

Feature Documentary

Directed, written & edited by Raed Rafei (2024)

A queer director returns to Tripoli, Lebanon to confront a hometown that once rejected him. He interviews the city’s inhabitants about their cultural and social beliefs and their embrace of new ideas. This contemplative urban symphony paints a picture of a city trapped in a self-spun web, paralyzed by a deep economic crisis, a faltering revolution, and a looming doomsday.

The film will have its world premiere at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) in November.