PUT YOUR SOUL ON YOUR HAND AND WALK

Fatma Hassouna, a Palestinian photographer killed by an Israeli airstrike, developed a friendship by video call with filmmaker Sepideh Farsi for a dialogue that transcended current events to create a compelling work of art.

When we first meet Fatma Hassouna on screen, the 24-year-old Palestinian photographer has a smile that radiates joy, even as she’s living under horrific conditions of Israeli military fire and starvation in Gaza. We see her in April 2024 via a video phone call placed by the filmmaker Sepideh Farsi, an Iranian exile now living in Paris. Farsi felt helpless watching Israel’s bombing and blocking of aid in Gaza. With borders closed to journalists, she embarks on a year-long series of video calls with Hassouna, known affectionately as Fatem, a dialogue that forms a stirring work of art in this film.

In parallel, a photo exhibition of Fatma Hassouna in Utopia from 1 October 2025.