ADNAN

Our most recent short film played at over 30 film festivals around the world, winning a bunch of awards. We have since adapted it into a picture book, illustrated beautifully by Syrian artist Diala Brisley, published internationally by Frances Lincoln / Quarto.

Adnan is an imaginative 10-year-old Syrian refugee boy who has had to flee his home country with his mother after the rest of their family were killed and their neighbourhood destroyed. Now settled in the UK, he must use all his creativity to break through his mother’s PTSD or risk losing her forever.

Here’s a guest blog I wrote for Refugee Week about the process of adapting the film to book, something I also covered in an event delivered at Edinburgh International Book Festival 2024.

Below is a 4 min featurette about the boy we cast in the lead role. The whole project has been just one big labour of love 💛💛💛