The Return: Life After ISIS
2021 • 90’ & 52’ • Spain/UK
With unprecedented access we enter the prison camp Roj in Syria, which holds families of ISIS fighters. Among them, probably the most famous British recruit Shamima Begum, who fled London when she was just 15, and Hoda Muthana from USA who allegedly incited her followers on Twitter to support the Islamic State. Universally reviled by the media, they now tell their stories for the very first time.
Director:
Alba Sotorra Clua
Producers:
Alba Sotorra Clua, Vesna Cudic & Carles Torras
Executive Producers:
Sam Collyns, Poppy Dixon, Jack Oliver & Jordi Ambros
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Best Documentary [Winner]
— Premis Gaudí
Best Documentary [Winner]
— Broadcast AwardsBest Single Documentary [Nominee]
— Royal Television Awards
Best Single Documentary [Winner]
— Edinburgh TV AwardsLaya Award from the Office of Civil and Political Rights
Young Audience Award
— Docs Barcelona 2021"Special Mention" – Best Documentary Competion
— Warsaw International Film FestivalNews & Current Affairs [Nominee]
– Rose d'Or AwardsBest Documentary [Nominee]
– Premios GoyaSXSW 2021 [World Premiere]
Hot Docs 2021
Cleveland International Film Festival 2021
Seattle International Film Festival 2021
Docs Barcelona 2021
Human Rights Watch Film Festival New York 2021
Sheffield Doc Fest 2021
Thessaloniki Documentary Film Festival 2021
DOXA Film Festival 2021
Dokufest 2021
Jerusalem Film Festival 2021
Nashville Film Festival 2021
Kurdish Film Festival New York 2021
Human Rights Film Festival Berlin 2021
Zurich Film Festival 2021
Heartland Film Festival 2021
Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival 2021
Warsaw International Film Festival 2021
Tallgrass Film Festival 2021
Bergen International Film Festival 2021
UNAFF International Documentary Film Festival 2021
Milwaukee Muslim Film Festival 2021
Denver Film Festival 2021
Hawaii International Film Festival 2021
Festival Protesta 2021
SomCinema Lleida International Film Festival 2021
Festival Cine por Mujeres 2021
Rocky Mountains Women's Film Festival 2021
International Crime and Punishment Film Festival 2021
Festival REC Tarragona 2021
Festival Cinéma Méditerranéen de Bruxelles 2021
Antenna International Documentary Film Festival 2022
Sedona International Film Festival 2022
Docville 2022
Espanoramas. Spanish Film Festival 2022
cinEScultura Festival 2022
Festival Internacional de Cine Político 2022
Film Festival Diritti Umani Lugano 2022
One World Film Festival 2022
Move it Festival 2022 -
“An extraordinary humanitarian achievement.”— Cine Addiction
“Stirring, sobering, and vitally humane.”
— Variety“Remarkable access.”
“Incredible achievement.”— Screen Daily“A sharp sense of structure and the largest of hearts.”
"Timely, immersive, and deeply poignant." — Film Threat“I was astounded by The Return. I was astonished by its access, astonished by its empathy and astonished by its existence… simply a superb piece of filmmaking”— Film Inquiry
Filmmaker’s Biography
Alba Sotorra Clua is an independent filmmaker and producer, the founder of the Barcelona-based production company Alba Sotorra S.L. Alba has worked in Syria, Afghanistan, Korea, Bosnia, Cuba, the US, Guatemala, England, Iran, Pakistan, Puerto Rico, and Qatar, and has lived long periods in the Middle East. Her films have premiered at such international festivals as HotDocs, Shanghai International Film Festival, Karlovy Vary, and Seminci. Her projects include documentary feature film GAME OVER (2015), which received the VIII Gaudí Award from the Catalan Film Academy and COMANDANTE ARIAN (2018), nominated for the Gaudí Awards for Best Documentary in 2019.