What do you do when you grow up without a family or a homeland, with a different vibe and a different tribe? You have to create your own path. This is the story of It Ain't Where You From. Dubai based filmmaker, poet, producer and activist Philip Jamal Rachid (aka Soultrotter) has assembled the primary talent of the burgeoning, young Gulf Hip Hop scene in a first-time collaboration with some of its key figures. Dance, music, spoken word, graphics and street art collide in this powerful film portrait of a thriving scene. Shot in outdoor and studio locations, imbued with saturated colours, stylish fashion and backed by a pulsating soundtrack, It Ain’t Where You From captures the melting pot of Gulf cities. Each artist has a personal history, each is struggling to find their way. We get to know what it takes to follow their passions and how Hip Hop gives voice to a third culture generation.

Filmmaker Bio

Philip Jamal Rachid is an Iraqi Kurdish writer & director from Amsterdam with an edgy, and dynamic style designed to captivate the eyes and ears, while defying expectations and pushing the traditional boundaries of genre. He is known for meshing high-end cinematic visuals with compelling emotive narrative storytelling. Philip J. Rachid eats, sleeps and breathes visual storytelling and always thrives to create meaning full content that will inspire. Philip has toured professionally as an actor and Bboy, but the past years he has focused on his career as a lmmaker and worked with top brands, labels, and artists to creatively develop and direct their lms. Clients include, PubG, Etihad, Red Bull, Nat Geo Kids, Asia Cup, #Mydubai, Mleiha, Adnoc, ENOC, Habtoor, OASIS Water, Renaissance Oman, and FIFA. Dhiraagu Maledives. Just to name a few. In 2014 he won the Samsung Short lm competition at The Dubai International Film Festival. After that he won the Silver Act Responsible award at Cannes Lions for a UN Female Rights awareness campaign in 2015. With his last short lms “The Moonlight Rider”, “SHE” and Hoody Man, he has been nominated and won 15 awards Internationally in 2018 and 2019. Currently he resides in Dubai, writes, directs and Consults his experience and shares his knowledge with new generation peers through workshops and lectures at NYU-Abu Dhabi, SAE, Studio TwoFour54, ImageNation, and Panasonic Master classes. His most recent accomplishment is his book Film-O-Sophy, which has been published in the UAE. With his new established company SOULTROTTER he has released his rst long format Film “It Ain’t Where You From”, which is commissioned by The Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi & Subbak London.