ABOUT THE FILM

An Arab fairy tale goes awry in the Netherlands when the invincible hero “Hassan-the-Smart” becomes a nameless junkie. The director (in a voice-over and through the nostalgic images of Amsterdam) projects his feelings of being lost in this fairy tale character. Eventually, the narrative becomes the story of the director trying to retrieve his lost childhood by attempting to come to terms with the sense of belonging nowhere. It is a story about being homeless in a city, being far away from home, having lost your own country, your culture, your roots, your identity.

DOAN | Filmmakers

Mahmoud Al Massad

Mahmoud Al Massad, a filmmaker, was born in Jordan in 1969. He studied Film & Art at Yarmouk University in Jordan and then fled the country in 1988 to Romania, Italy, and Germany, where he studied and worked in the film industry.

Mahmoud Al Massad -- 40' (Jordan/Netherlands: 2001)