Winter Ballad Dir. May Kassem

Born in Beirut in 1975, May Kassem is a filmmaker, screenwriter and teacher, who has made short 16mm films, videos, documentaries, and animated films.
Her work has focused on the impact of art on society (Organized Freedom is Compulsory – 1994 / Pre-revolutionary art is the Art of the Revolution - 1996), as well as the marginalization of segments of urban populations such as migrant Syrian construction workers in Lebanon (Joker -1998), and the plight of undocumented immigrants in Paris (Qui écrira l'histoire – 1996).
May presented two music programs on 96.2 FM Radio Liban « Poivre Noir, Piment Rouge » (world music) as well as « Champ Sonore »(2011-2024) (electronic, contemporary music, and sound-scapes) and now produces Mazaj (in Arabic) for online streaming and Tarab (in English) for Afrobeat radio in NY . She teaches Screenwriting and works as a script-doctor. May is currently working on a documentary that deals with the struggle of the undocumented immigrants, 20 years ago and today. The struggle of les Sans-Papiers de Saint-Bernard in 1996 grew tremendously with the backing of the unions and a large part of the French population and gained essential media coverage. May was a young filmmaker at the time, supporting the struggle, living with it day in and day out. The film, a 6-hour documentary essay in 5 chapters, reminisces over the history and legacy of that struggle, through personal and collective memory, against the backdrop of an evolving urban landscape, that of Paris today. May lives in Beirut. For the time being.
for more info: https://maykassem.wordpress.com/
https://soundcloud.com/may-kassem-591292977