Syrian Director Feras Fayyad on His New Documentary 'The Cave'

posted on: Oct 21, 2019

SOURCE: KCRW

BY: KIM MASTERS

Almost a decade ago, Syrian filmmaker Feras Fayyad was imprisoned and tortured by the Assad regime for filming anti-government protests. After his release in 2012, he kept the cameras rolling. Fayyad became the first Syrian director to be nominated for Oscar with his 2017 film ‘Last Men in Aleppo,’ about the White Helmets who rescue the injured at great risk to themselves. Fayyad’s new film, ‘The Cave,’ profiles a courageous young doctor as she runs an underground hospital in a besieged area outside Damascus. Fayyad gives us his perspective as Syria undergoes yet another phase of tragedy. And he tells us how he trained local cinematographers to capture more than 500 hours of footage underground–including harrowing scenes of the immediate aftermath of chemical attacks.