Resisting Oblivion (Film + Performance)

Film Festival: Where the Wind Scatters Seeds;
7.−9. February 2025
Filmhaus Köln

Where The Wind Scatters Seeds, memories bloom from barren ground of tears in the soil, whispers of forgotten friends, shadows of distant homes, erased faces on torn photographs. Echoes of yesterday, dreams of tomorrow. 

Over the course of three days, a carefully curated film program, born from interdisciplinary collaboration - takes shape. 
Weaving together the intersection of memory, dislocation, and radical solidarity, the program uses film to confront, as well as imagine beyond colonial violence and the ways it warps our sense of self, community, time and space. Complimenting the film program with alternative media forms such as food, music, an interactive drawing corner & a healing conversation circle, the cinema is transformed into a space for nurturing ancestral forms of belonging. It reflects on the essence of home—its presence, what it carries, and the void left in its absence. The showcased works examine the act of remembering, transforming archives into dynamic spaces for resistance, reclamation, and processes of un-learning.

Curated by:

Schaho Balbas

Vincent E.

Ido Hassan

Julia Jesionek

Lan Mi Le

Polina Resnianska

Sarah Savalanpour

Shadi Tabibzadeh

Safiya Yon

DAY 2

Our Eyes Have Exhausted the Vocabulary of Death/

Borrowing its title from Etel Adnan’s Jenin, this program brings together films that challenge the colonial and authoritarian use of visual media. By reframing archives as spaces of resistance and reclamation, these works highlight memory’s survival and vulnerability, offering insights into how storytelling can preserve histories, forge solidarity, and foster hope amidst loss.
Organized into three sections—Two Rivers and a Wind, Resisting Oblivion, and Vocabulary of Absence—the program traverses landscapes of conflict and displacement, connecting stories across borders to expose shared struggles and resist erasure.

Program #2: Resisting Oblivion

Resisting Oblivion uncovers hidden scars of history in Iran and the Afghan diaspora, revisiting narratives erased by authoritarian regimes or national exclusion. These films explore identity and belonging amidst displacement, showing the power of memory to resist oblivion and reclaim lost histories.

Film: The Silhoettes

After the film there will be a performance by Atena Eshtiangi.

Curated by Vincent E., Sarah Savalanpour and Shadi Tabibzadeh

IMPORTANT NOTES

If you don't have a ticket, come by and we will put you on the waiting list.

If you have a ticket, please come earlier (at least 15min). If you are late, we might give your place to the people on the waiting list.