What does friendship mean across languages, generations and cosmologies? How do personal bonds evolve into political alliances, and what drives individuals to engage in struggles that don't directly reflect their own experiences? As Berlin is home to diverse diasporas, many with ties to countries enduring war and displacement, these questions have gained urgency. The increasing restrictions on Palestinian solidarity movements and shifts in migration policies have reshaped communities, relationships and alliances. This essay film unfolds in phases, blending field research, artistic inquiry and archival storytelling. It explores friendship through cultural studies, interviews and personal narratives, while highlighting the challenges of community-building amid repression, violence and discrimination. The film captures the fragility and resilience of solidarity in times of upheaval.
A visual artist and researcher, Nafis Fathollahzadeh was a fellow at the Rosa Luxemburg scholarly programme on Authoritarianism and Counter Strategies (IRGAC) and is affiliated with EUME: Forum Transregionale Studien in Berlin.
