About the Screening:

Pushing the boundaries of cinema and rejecting the traditional one-way relationship between the audience and the screen, the sound documentary creates an immersive experience for the listener to transcend the immediate and access the imagined. Rooted in the city sounds of Paris, these two documentaries present a deep and fresh perspective on the pulse of the city ; on its culture and its ghosts ; its past and its present.

About the Films:

1. L'expérience de ses fantômes / The sound of the ghosts

by Yasmine Mahjoubi and Neelansh Mittra

This sound documentary follows Eva, a Spanish tour guide living in Paris for the past 7 years. Eva conducts the 'Mysteries and Legends Tour', every week in the heart of the city in Île Saint-Louis. The tour traces the dark history of Paris, where she introduces her audience to the violence that consumed the city in the Middle Ages. Through Eva’s undying passion for discovery, the piece invites the listener to see beyond what is mostly known of Paris today; asking them to patiently observe the city, and listen deeply to the sound of its ghosts.

Duration : 16:49 minutes

Language : French, English

2. Forging Falafel

by Raghad Kasim & Vedvanti Machindra Kasture

This audio documentary embarks you on a short auditory adventure that whisks you from the Middle East to the cultural melting-pot of Paris, unraveling the captivating tale of falafel. Beyond its culinary allure, falafel carries a remarkable narrative of cultural heritage and unexpected conflict.

About the Artists:

Neelansh Mittra (India, 28)

divides his time between making documentaries and designing sound for films and installations. From 2021-2023, he worked as a director on a documentary series with the Centre for Media and Alternative Communication, which was aimed at drawing attention to the rich and complex history of folk music traditions across India and the livelihoods of musicians who practice them. He has a graduate degree in history and a diploma in creative documentary filmmaking. A Scholarship Laureate of the International Programme for Sound Documentary at ENS Louis Lumiere in Paris, he continues to explore different ways of working with the medium of sound through his practice.

Yasmine Mahjoubi (Morocco, 29)

is a freelance director based in Casablanca, working mainly on documentary projects. In 2021, she directed and edited her first feature- length documentary, "Rise Up to the Top" , as part of a solidarity project promoting education and entrepreneurship. In 2023, she directed her first short documentary film, In the Mind of a Thief, as part of the Moroccan Stories program run by the SDI (Scottish Documentary Institute), in partnership with

Fidadoc (Agadir International Documentary Festival). Yasmine has a degree in Cinema from the Université de Montréal (UDEM).

Vedvanti Machindra Kasture (India, 27)

is an assistant director in the film and audiovisual industry. A graduate in Journalism from Delhi University and in Direction from the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute in Kolkata, Vedvanti discovered sound recording and production through film. Convinced of its key role, she wants to explore all its creative potential. In 2016, she produced the radio programme Passion to Profession (University's Community Radio Station). She has worked on the feature film Milestone nominated for the 2020 Venice Film Festival as well as several web series such as Scoop (Matchbox Pictures, Netflix).

Raghad Kasim (Iraq, 33)

is a filmmaker, communications & social media specialist and storyteller. As a freelancer, she develops and implements communication campaigns for various organisations. Her creative portfolio boasts a range of film projects, including her debut documentary short Once More (2022), which delves into the essence of what is a homeland. She is committed to addressing the challenges Iraqi and Middle Eastern women face. She uses sound documentaries to amplify their voices, granting them space for unfettered expression and empowerment.