Yamam Nabeel introduces the I’m Migrant Film Festival
The I’m Migrant Film Festival (1-27 February 2026) was born out of a very personal documentary series of the same title that charts the life of exiled Iraqi artists who have been living in Europe since the 1960s/1970s. In creating that project, I wanted to preserve the heritage of the wider region, as well as the parallel Iraq created in exile by some of the generation’s greatest artists.
The overwhelming reaction from audiences to the I’m Migrant documentaries energised me to keep fighting to amplify the voices of these important artists, not just from Iraq, but from the wider SWANA Region. It is important to platform the contribution of the region, not only to our own heritage, but to the culture and heritage of Europe.
In 2025, together with Art Forward’s Creative Director Andrew Etherington, the opportunity came to organise a series of screenings platforming voices from the region. There was a huge response from filmmakers wanting to take part, which allowed us to look for a suitable venue. Here came Genesis Cinema, a truly independent cinema which has been championing independent cinema for decades. This partnership, with support from BFI and Film London, allowed us to turn the screenings into a full blown festival with over 40 films throughout a month long festival.
I wanted the festival to be able to highlight people both from the region and the diaspora who are working hard to create a less confrontational, more livable and more positive future. As we prepare for the second edition of the festival, the world has been moving towards a more euro-centric/western-centric narrative, and with an extreme shift towards anti-immigrant rhetoric, and movement towards nativism in Europe. It has become increasingly urgent to establish the origins of our heritage and culture, and to platform voices that represent our long lineage from the SWANA Region, as well as our contribution to Europe throughout history.
We want audiences to take away a greater understanding of the wealth of culture, the lives and experiences, within the SWANA Region, that are individual to each of the countries, from Sudan to Lebanon, from Iraq to Morocco, and to take away something that the mainstream narrative does not provide.
For those who do have lived experience, we want them to be able to see themselves and the complexity of their lives on screen, and for those who are not from the region, to be able to experience part of the rich culture and the various histories represented.
Ultimately, we want people to think that the differences between our cultures and lived experiences are much smaller than some people in the mainstream media would have us believe.
