DANCING ON THE RUINS

Documentary, Short,

Netherlands

2025

Runtime, min

How do you hold on to hope in times of violence and oppression? For visual artist Mounira Al Solh, born in Lebanon and based in the Netherlands, making art is her lifeline: a way to ‘resist the feeling that we are doomed.’ Remarkably, this does not result in somber work. Dancing on the Ruins shows how Al Solh fearlessly builds a multifaceted and playfully activist body of work. Through textiles, ceramics, installations, video and paintings, the artist creates a colorful universe in which she blends personal stories with ancient myths and musical traditions. Her passion is fueled by a deep sense of urgency to offer optimism in a world full of injustice.

Director:

Bibi Fadlalla

Selections and Awards:

Bonnefanten Exhibition Opening Maastricht June 6, 2025 World Premiere Netherlands

REVIEWS:

THe film is a visual dialogue between pain and light. Every scene seems to answer the question: how does art survive among ruins? The editing feels like breathing: an inhale of hope, an exhale of memory.

Sabrina Badran

The film shows that art is not a luxury, but a form of protest. Al Solh doesn’t escape the world. She builds a fairer one. Films like this remind us why culture matters at all.

Olivia Martinez

I couldn’t hold back tears. Every smile of the artist carries the past, but also faith that the future is still possible. It’s a short film, yet it lingers long after it ends.

Anna Missaglia

I know that feeling -painting while everything falls apart. The film doesn’t inspire imitation but honesty. Al Solh shows that art doesn’t heal wounds, it helps us remember them.

Javier Martinez Perez

Filmed with the subtlety of the Dutch documentary school. It balances contemplation and political statement, yet without slogans, only images filled with the breath of life.

Javier Hernandez Gomez

The reference to Picasso’s Guernica turns the film into a bridge between the 20th and 21st centuries. Mounira Al Solh continues the conversation of great artists about war, but through the feminine energy of creation.

Samuel Robinson