Blog
Natalie Khairallah

Two Minutes and 47 Seconds With Lebanese Filmmaker Elie Fahed

In the small Lebanese village of Zeitoun, situated near Nahr Ibrahim and located in Mount Lebanon’s district of Keserwan, there exists nothing more than a few churches and mosques, one gas station, and some small shops. So small of a town, it cannot even be found on a map of Lebanon.

Go ahead. Look it up. I’ll wait.

But that was always the true beauty of it for Lebanese filmmaker and director Elie Fahed. His childlike curiosity had always amazed me—from the time he was a teenager up until today. He’s always occupied a sense of wisdom that not even the most sophisticated adult could easily obtain. What Elie found beautiful, extraordinary, and awe-inspiring, others found mundane and commonplace.

Torn pages ripped out from magazines. Bundles of old newspapers sprawled out across his desk, chair, and floor. A dimly-lit lamp. Various sizes of tin cans. A step into his room may look like an absurd mess to any outsider. But to the artist? It simply spurred his creativity.

Elie recently released a very short clip on his admiration and appreciation for various people, places, and things. The name of his video, released on YouTube, kind of speaks for itself (see below).



[Some of the things Elie used to complete the “Things I Love” video.]

In a recent interview with StepFeed, Elie explains the inspiration behind his short two-minute YouTube clip. He had been driving, and it “felt so good crossing at the very last second” as the stoplight turned from yellow to red.

The best culinary invention? “The next morning I had a man’ouche and I was like, ‘this very simple culinary invention can make your day better.’”



“And throughout the days I discovered that there’re so many cool and fun moments that we should share with the world…”

My personal favorite thing that Elie loves? I happen to love it too. Every time I walk through my grandma’s building, built nearly one century ago, I catch myself admiring the beautiful patterns on the floor.

Every old Beiruti tile is a work of art, says Elie.



But the most amazing thing? We are living at the same time as legendary Lebanese singer Fairouz, he says.




What about you? Watch Elie capture his loves in less than three minutes, and let him know what you admire too at #ThingsILove.



[Images via here and here here].

1