Biography
I am a Lebanese sound designer, film director, doctoral researcher and musician and I am based in Helsinki, Finland.
I am currently developing my second feature film.
For the past few years, I have mostly worked as a sound editor, sound designer and foley artist in the cinema industry on Lebanese, Arab, European and international films among which “Honeyland”, “You will die at twenty”, “1982” & “The River”.
My music compositions are mainly ambient and experimental/underground electronic inspired by urban and industrial soundscapes.
As for my personal films, they take various forms ranging from cinematographic essay, to video art, to fiction, very often intertwined.
Mostly, they tackle the subjects of oppression and confinement generated by social and political pressures.
I try to translate their impact on bodies and individual behavior through sounds and images.
Chaos, violence and corruption that surround me transit through my perception and emotions into my own darkly tinted creations.
Nécrose, my first feature essay, is a co-production between Lebanon (Corps Céleste) and Finland (Kenno Filmi).
World Premiere : IFFR 2024 (Netherlands)
National Competition : Docpoint 2024 (Finland)
Some extra experience:
I acted in few short films and one feature film, “Moss Agate” by Salim Mourad, as a main character.
I was a teacher for 4 years at highschools giving cinema courses in the framework of the french baccalaureate. I also gave a sound and light workshop at the university IESAV-USJ for 3 years among other teachers.
In 2016, I wrote and directed “Planting Life”, a UNICEF commissioned docu-drama.
Background
I hold a Masters degree in Film Sound Design & Recording, Aalto University in Finland.
I studied cinema and audiovisual at IESAV, Saint-Joseph University of Beirut where I majored with a bachelor degree in film directing.
I also took part in a 6 month exchange program at TAMK, University of Applied Sciences in Tampere (Finland), where I mainly focused on sound courses varying from foley art to music recording and mixing as well as sound design workshops.
In parallel, I was also attending VFX ,2D & 3D animation courses.
The journey resulted in my hybrid film “Contact”, shot between Finland and Germany.