The Marshes of Iraq is a beautiful and heart-rending documentary that tells how climate change is destroying an ancient way of life. Filmmaker Budoor Al Abid tells us how she used film to highlight the plight of a people whose world is being decimated:
The Marsh Arabs in the south of Iraq live lightly, their carbon footprint is virtually invisible, but their homeland is shrinking each year due to climate change.
The Mesopotamian marshes are thought to be the cradle of civilisation. Its inhabitants count the Sumerians of the 4th millennium BC as their ancestors and research has found they are the forefathers of the Mesopotamians who established the civilisation of Iraq.
Their ancient lifestyle revolves around their herds of water buffalo, fishing, and harvesting the marshland’s weeds and reeds, and they have a great oral, literary, and lyrical cultural heritage. Myself, the film director Ali Mohammed and our crew were lucky enough to spend time with the Marsh Arabs, interviewing them and filming them at work and home. We found them to be a warm and kind people.
Their heritage and ancient way of life are rapidly being lost due to climate change, which has led to an increase in temperatures and a lack of rainfall. Many people have left the marshland, its water levels have fallen, and water salinity has greatly increased. The drought has led to the loss of livestock, with water buffalo dying due to salinity and water pollution, which are also destroying the region's biodiversity.
Farmer, Jabbar Al-Assadi, told me: “Previously our water was fresh and the temperatures lower.”
While buffalo breeder, Riad Hashem, said: “We are anxious because the buffalo are falling sick. We live in fear of tomorrow and the day after.”
Hussein Sabri Al-Asadi, a builder of the area’s traditional reed houses, told me when we met in a beautiful mudhif (guest house) constructed of reeds: “People migrate due to the salinity that threatens their livelihoods because the fish die and the livestock also. People migrate to urban centres in search of their livelihoods.”
The women of the marshes play a leading role in the local economy. It is they who milk the buffalo, using the milk to make cream, yoghurt and cheese, which they travel to the city to sell. The income allows them to buy essentials such as flour, vegetables and clothes for their children.
While describing her work, milk seller Umm Haider, told me: “Our livelihood is dependent on buffalos.”
Abu Haider, a fisherman told me about how parts of the marshes were dammed in the 1990s, and the ensuing persecution of local people by the Saddam Hussein regime. He said: “Before, even if there was drought, the water remained fresh.”
My short film ‘The Marshes of Iraq’ was a chance to give these people, who welcomed me to their world, a voice and to tell the world about the Marsh Arabs’ plight and the destruction of their ancient homeland.
The film came about when I was a project manager and co-founder at RAW Media. In 2021, I secured a small grant from the British Council for a short film called 'The Marshes', to be screened at the UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow, UK, 2021.
The film received global attention, and was screened at many top film festivals, including the International Science Film Festival, India, 2021; The Academy of Fine Arts in Baghdad Film and Television Festival, Baghdad, Iraq, 2021; and the Hollywood Arab Film Festival, Hollywood, USA, 2022. The film was also featured at COP28, in 2023, in the United Arab Emirates.
Despite its modest budget of around $4,000 USD, the film achieved the remarkable feat of becoming one of the first to receive a digital award in the form of NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens - digital assets that represent ownership of unique items, often linked to art, collectibles, or media).
The film was a significant achievement in my life. I was honoured when it received a Silver Award at the Exposure Sharjah Festival and Best Documentary Award from Meihodo Film Festival in Japan.
The Marshes film project developed my skills and the skills of the production team. It opened many doors and created numerous opportunities in the global film industry.
Thanks to its success, I was awarded a grant from Al Jazeera for a music documentary project in Iraq. I then secured a position as a documentary film producer with Al Jazeera Documentary Channel and worked as a freelance producer with Al Sharq Channel.
I will leave the final word to Dr Francisco Jose Luis, a professor of religion and oriental studies, talking about when people return to the marshes: “When you ask them why would you leave the cities and microwaves and televisions, they will tell you: ‘Your way of life is crazy’.”
