Filmmaker follows Brussels family for a decade
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Documentary filmmaker Lidewij Nuitten spent ten years documenting the life of Lamia, a single mother, and her three children, Mehdi, Meissa, and Zaher, in the Schaerbeek district of Brussels, Belgium.
Nuitten initially began the project in 2015, seeking to get to know her neighbours after realizing she didn’t know anyone on her street.
A brief encounter with Lamia and her children sparked a connection, leading Nuitten to follow their lives for a decade, culminating in the documentary On ira tous au paradis. Nuitten was drawn to the family’s resilience despite facing challenges such as Lamia balancing two jobs to provide for her children, attending a school in a difficult neighbourhood, and limited space for play.
The filmmaker continued filming even through personal crises, including the death of the children’s father in 2019 and the 2016 Brussels bombings, which deeply affected the family and brought issues of racism to the forefront. Nuitten noted that while the children initially seemed untouched by racism, they began to experience it as teenagers. As the years passed, Nuitten observed how changes in Schaerbeek, including increased drug crime and violence, impacted the family.
Lamia worried about the dangers her children faced as they grew older, while the children themselves navigated evolving cultural influences and differing opinions on topics like relationships and identity. Nuitten aimed to create a nuanced portrait of the family, avoiding stereotypes and showcasing the complexities of life in Brussels, hoping the film would encourage viewers to see the universal humanity within individual experiences.
