Samera Kadry’s Palestine-set documentary Where Did My Mother Go will be one of the first features produced by the UK’s new Counterpoints Productions, which will focus on migrant and refugee stories.
The company has been set up by Almir Koldzic as the production arm of UK charity Counterpoints Arts, co-founded by Koldzic. It works with institutions and individuals in the creative sector, focusing on issues of migration and displacement.
Koldzic is joined in the production arm by Ornella Mutoni, who has previously worked on TV documentaries for BBC and Channel 4, and Laith Elzubaidi, who also works in development for Bassel Ghandour’s production company.
Counterpoint Productions is collaborating with non-profit organisation Climate Spring to develop TV series and features that explore the intersection between climate change and migration, with at least one as yet undisclosed project co-funded by BBC Film.
Where Did My Mother Go is being produced by Bafta winner Yasmine Afifi.
The slate also includes two fiction TV projects, as well short documentaries.
Further partners include Bafta, Netflix, Apple and Channel 4.
“Refugees and migrants are so vilified to the extent that we think it’s more important than ever for the film industry, but also broader society, to find ways of sharing and hearing and listening to these stories,” said Mutoni.
Counterpoints Arts has also provided consultancy to several high-profile productions, including Netflix’s upcoming feature Exit West, produced by Barack Obama’s Higher Ground.
“We realised there was a proper appetite for developing more content in this space, and there is no dedicated agency that we could see that really looks at the issues of displacement and migration in the context of film,” said Kodlzic.
”We hope to create brilliant content, but also influence the industry in terms of how it treats artists and filmmakers from these backgrounds.”
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