Arissa Tales

"This Is My Heaven" is an experimental documentary that sketches the life of a nomadic family in Tunisia, in the heart of agricultural fields. Through a contemplative lens, the filmmaker invites us to share and feel their philosophy of life--within what they call their paradise.

The protagonists of the film and their lives are not only reporting images, but carrying a philosophical point of view of cosmic proportions that emerges through contemplative images centered on: the earth, rootedness and identity, strength and will, love and affection, self-expression and pain, perception, and wisdom.

This Is My Hell is a profound psychological and contemplative film centered on a man caught between grief and hope following his brother’s disappearance during a perilous border crossing. His daily life and healing process are inextricably tied to his role as a mortuary manager, where he receives the bodies of migrants washed ashore and confronts the hollow gazes of families searching for their lost loved ones. After a decade of collective family depression, he decides to take a trip to find his brother in Europe, while his mother attempts to navigate her own path toward recovery.