Middle East and North Africa-based independent film distributor Front Row Filmed Entertainment has inked a deal with Australian production company Dream Creations International for the distribution rights of Daizy Gedeon’s documentary Enough! Lebanon’s Darkest Hour.
Dream Creations and Front Row will be submitting the documentary to the Lebanese censorship board in the coming week.
Provided it passes censorship in Lebanon, there will be a Lebanese theatrical premiere in October followed by the rest of the Middle East and a string of international territories throughout the fall, as well as a streaming release in February 2022.
Shot over four years and across four continents, the film addresses the 2019 October Revolution and the global social justice movement that was triggered among the millions of Lebanese diaspora who rallied to support their families and friends back home.
There are exclusive interviews with many of the key political leaders at the time, including Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri (first interview given to a western journalist in 5 years at the time), former Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil, and prominent Hezbollah minister, Mohammed Fneich (first interview given by any member of Hezbollah to a western journalist since 2006 at the time).
Gedeon’s documentary is also the first about Lebanon to be released since the 2020 Beirut port explosion, which killed 211 people and left 300,000 homeless, and caused more than $15 billion in damages.
In the film, she highlights the importance of the Lebanese citizens’ roles in the upcoming parliamentary elections which are scheduled for May 2022 and could potentially be make-or-break for the future of the tiny Mediterranean country.
Front Row CEO Gianluca Chakra, who along with non-theatrical sales director Carine Chaiban, negotiated the deal with Gedeon and producer Ronny Mouawad from Dreams Creations International, said the documentary held a key message for viewers.
“The Lebanese diaspora counts over 16 million Lebanese, 1.5 million of which are only in the US and the majority (circa 8 million) throughout Latin America.
“Australia alone counts 400,000 but around 1 mil identify as Lebanese.
“The people now have a chance to save themselves and the nation in the upcoming elections and we sincerely hope that this documentary will help achieve that.”
Gedeon, who was presented with Better World Fund and Filmfestivals.com’s Movie That Matters Award 2021 at Cannes in July, said time was running out for people to register to vote in the elections.
“We need everyone to get out and vote, the Lebanese in Lebanon but especially the expats,” she said.
“But the expats must register to vote first and there is only a small window between September to 20 November 2021 for them to do that.
“Anyone over the age of 21 can register to vote and should but it is a process and even if they can’t get it done in time for the 2022 elections, they should do it now for the following elections.
“We have to play the long game and we need everyone to start taking their role seriously and get involved.”
Find out more about the film here.