Three Promises is the story of a mother and her camera, a son, and his suppressed memories. In the early 2000s, Suha films her daily family life, punctuated by times sheltering with her two young children in the basement when Israel’s army retaliates against the Second Intifada in the West Bank. In each moment of intense danger, she promises God that she will leave Palestine if they survive the attack. In 2017, her son, the director of this film, discovers this rich archive of his childhood, and he reconnects with his suppressed past. Through his film, he explores with his mother what drove her to record their stolen childhood and why she delayed fleeing. What emerges is the heartrending portrait of everyday life in times of strife and the beauty of a mother’s love and sacrifices. Blending the voice of the present with impressive family footage, Yousef Srouji completes the story begun by Suha, thus averting the act of personal and collective forgetting.

Past Festivals

Visions du Réel (World Premiere)

Malmo Arab Film Festival (Swedish Premiere)

Camden International Film Festival (U.S. Premiere) - in September 2023