Tripoli/A tale of three citiesa documentary by Lebanese director Raed Rafei, will celebrate its world premiere in the Frontlight section of the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA), which will be held from 14 to 24 November. The Hollywood journalist is revealing the first official trailer for the film, produced by Rafei via his company Anwar Film and Eliane Raheb.
“Queer filmmaker Raed Rafei returns to Tripoli, Lebanon, to face a hometown that once rejected him,” a synopsis of the documentary explains. “Interview the city's residents about their cultural and social beliefs and their embrace of new ideas. This contemplative urban symphony paints a picture of a city caught in a self-woven web, paralyzed by a deep economic crisis, a faltering revolution and a looming doomsday.”
The director's film Miguel's war won the Teddy Award at the Berlin Film Festival in 2021. “From a queer lens, the film is a poetic reflection on the crucial and dramatic moments that Lebanon has experienced in recent years in anticipation of the current devastating war,” he said.
“Tripoli is my hometown. That's where I grew up and where my roots are,” Rafei continued. “As a queer child, I always felt alienated from the city's dominant heteronormative culture. But since I started living elsewhere, every time I return to visit it, I feel an inexplicable magnetic attraction towards it.”
The trailer (below) shows several people talking, from one asking, “Why does it matter if I'm a girl or a boy?” to another who shares what the Quran says about the punishment for the people of Sodom. Phrases such as “judgment day”, “high heels”, “black sheep”, “diversity”, “revolution” and “collapse phase” also appear in the teaser.
“Through cinema, I found a way to reorient myself in the city,” Rafei explained. “The film importantly deconstructs the origins of homophobic discourse but also explores the depth and complexity of belonging to one's hometown. My position as both a native of Tripoli and an outsider has allowed me to explore the many facets of the city, both as a real space and as an imagined and fantasized entity.