abroad
“A well-written, well-acted slice of life film with an intelligent, subtle and precise sociopolitical subtext.”
— Cinephilia & Beyond
“… Relevant and provocative.”
— KIRK FERNWOOD, One Film Fan
“Entertaining and Touching.”
— DC Shorts Film Festival
“Abroad can safely claim a space among well-conceived, credibly engineered, and suitably pertinent short film efforts while deftly yet effortlessly conveying its message…”
— KIRK FERNWOOD, One Film Fan
“Abroad gives proof to the point that when you start with a solid screenplay and cast two fine actors who can carry it off, the audience is bound to follow.”
— MARK SCHWAB, Diamond in the Rough Films
“Alexander and Seigneurie are exquisite.”
—MATTHEW MAGUIRE, Theatre Program Director at Fordham University
“Un court métrage simple, doux et subtil dans l’écriture et dans le jeu, qui expose plusieurs problèmes imbriqués, dont on sent qu’ils entrent en écho les uns avec les autres.”
— MARCEAU DESCHAMPS-SÉGURA, Le Conservatoire National Supérieur d'Art Dramatique (CNSAD)
“Subtilement, de manière organique, le film évolue comme dans une pièce de théâtre, un seul lieu, un seul temps, l’espace d’une discussion où la tension se fait croissante.”
— NAYLA RACHED, Agenda Culturel
“The most prominent quality of Abroad is the fact that it succeeds in presenting a story that’s universal, accessible, and relatable to all, despite the powerful sociopolitical commentary.”
—Cinephilia & Beyond
synopsis
Jad and Rania, a Lebanese couple living in New York City, struggle to achieve their shared dream of breaking into the entertainment industry due, in part, to the typecasting of Arab actors.
Written by Pascale Seigneurie and Directed by Zayn Alexandre.
Festival Highlights
*World Premiere: 2018 Santa Barbara International Film Festival
*Official Selection: 2018 Lebanese Film Festival
*Special Screening: 2018 Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP), “Summer Short Screening Series”
*Special Screening: The Zolberg Institute on Migration and Mobility, The New School
*Official Selection: 2019 DC Shorts Film Festival, “DC Shorts & Sweets”
*Official Selection: 2019 Beirut International Women Film Festival
"Our selection committee was deeply impressed by the power of "Abroad" in capturing the intimacy of the Leba- nese immigrant experience amidst a tangle of forces that constantly tug at the lives of those who--by choice or because of need--leave Lebanon. Through humor to deal with racism and economic expediency, and painful poignancy about lives stretched across thousands of miles, and with an economy of visual and spoken lan- guage, Alexander tells a story that has been replayed in one way or another in many immigrant lives. Grounded as
the film is in a post-9/11 moment, "Abroad" nonetheless could be speak-ing of anytime Lebanese (and others) leave a home seeking opportunities made all the harder (if not impossible) to attain by stereotypes and racism, and by the constant pull of "home" and those left behind.
A veritable tour de force."
— Khayrallah Center for Lebanese Diaspora Studies
Press
INDIEWIRE
Santa Barbara Film Festival Announces 2018 Slate, Will Open with Emilio Estevez’s ‘the public’
DEADLINE
Santa Barbara Film Festival Lineup Unveiled
DIRECTORS NOTES
A Middle-Eastern Actor Couple Try to Navigate the Pressures of Relationships, Family & Typecasting in ‘Abroad’