{"id":888,"date":"2014-02-27T08:07:21","date_gmt":"2014-02-27T13:07:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stevedorst.com\/blog\/?p=888"},"modified":"2016-03-16T09:22:10","modified_gmt":"2016-03-16T13:22:10","slug":"beirut-dispatch-5-things-i-learned-in-lebanon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stevedorst.com\/blog\/blog\/2014\/02\/27\/beirut-dispatch-5-things-i-learned-in-lebanon\/","title":{"rendered":"Beirut Dispatch: 5 Things I Learned in Lebanon"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"photo\"<\/a>Beirut is a complete blast. The people are dynamic, the food crazy good, and in a week I’m all over the country, from the Syrian border in the north to close to Israel in the south. Here’s five things I learned during my film shoot in Lebanon.<\/p>\n

<\/h4>\n

<\/h4>\n

1. Beirut\u2019s got an image problem<\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

When I told friends I was going to Beirut, all conversations and Facebook comments were variations on \u201cbe safe, be careful.\u201d Some mentioned Hezbollah. Most focused on the Syrian civil war, which has already sent almost a million refugees into Lebanon (a small country of only 4 million that is ill-equipped to welcome so many people.)<\/p>\n

\n

\n\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\n\t
\n\t\t[Show thumbnails]<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Turns out, concerns aren\u2019t overblown. The night I arrive, police stop me for more than an hour near my hotel. They don\u2019t like my camera equipment (it doesn\u2019t help that the hotel is catty-corner to Parliament!) My taxi driver has a soccer ball, so we juggle on the cobblestones while Mr. Police speaks, at length, on his iPhone. No dice. Ultimately, my hosts book me in a less sensitive accommodation. Aaaah, sweet sleep.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

2. Dynamic and cool, the Lebanese carry on<\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

The first day of shooting goes according to plan.<\/p>\n

That literally is the most beautiful sentence you can write if you\u2019re a filmmaker abroad.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, there are bombs . . . If you die, you die.\u201d<\/h6>\n

This is 100% due to my team in Beirut, the all-Lebanese staff of the USAID-funded Lebanese Investment in Microfinance project. All logistics, scheduling, transport, and access issues are worked out in advance. Thanks Khalil, Carla, Mahmoud, Moussa, Liliane!<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a few things I hear throughout the day\u2014the likes of which don\u2019t float around the local Whole Foods back home: \u201cWe had our own civil war for 20 years, and we didn\u2019t all go running into other countries!\u201d . . . \u201cThe refugees get a stipend at the border. Then they accept lower pay in our jobs. Our young men can\u2019t compete!\u201d . . . \u201cYes, there are bombs. But we go out almost every night: if you die, you die.\u201d<\/p>\n

Day one\u2019s a wrap. I\u2019m impressed at the work ethic and efficiency of my team. I\u2019m also surprised by how sanguine people remain despite the dicey security situation.<\/p>\n

Dynamic and cool, the Lebanese carry on.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

3. Fishing is an endurance sport<\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

Jet lag sucks.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t get to sleep until past 3am. I hate my 4am wake-up call. I despise the 4:45am pick-up. It\u2019s still pitch black as we drive up the coast to the tiny fishing village of El Beddaoui, in Chekka.<\/p>\n

\n

\n\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\n\t
\n\t\t[Show thumbnails]<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n\nWhat I don\u2019t know is that we\u2019re less than an hour from the Syrian border. And minutes from the sectarian violence in Tripoli\u2014where we\u2019ll go before lunch.<\/span><\/p>\n

Rabih is a fisherman. He\u2019s been on the water since 3am setting his nets. He bought his used boat and nets with a microfinance loan. Today, he work for himself and not for the man. It\u2019s changed his family\u2019s life, and I\u2019m here to tell that story.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the pre-dawn blue hour as I step on the boat. Here, at the dock, the water is serene, but soon in the open Mediterranean, the waves knock me around. I\u2019m filming with the Canon 5D Mark 3, with the 16-35mm lens on a Manfrotto monopod\u2014small, lightweight, great in low light.<\/p>\n

\u201cRabih can\u2019t stop smiling. After all, it\u2019s his boat, his nets, and he\u2019s making a better living now.\u201d<\/h6>\n

As the sun rises, Rabih stands heroically above the horizon. The work is grueling, as he pulls up the thousands of yards of nets by hand, fish entwined, balled up in baskets on deck.<\/p>\n

After two hours at sea, I shoot some b-roll around town, rejoin Rabih at the fish market in Tripoli (no issues), hang out with his family at home, then return to port where he\u2019s prepping to head out to sea again.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m exhausted, but Rabih can\u2019t stop smiling. After all, it\u2019s his boat, his nets, and he\u2019s making a better living now.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

4. Shawarma & Robert Downey, Jr. go together<\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

My second day of filming I spend on a cattle farm in Bekaa with Samir. He\u2019s bought 10 heads of cattle over several years thanks to three successively larger microfinance loans, and expanded his business considerably.<\/p>\n

Working around all that cattle dung inspired a terrible hunger, so Khalil recommends one of his favorites: Barbar Shawarma, which is located in Corniche, a seaside promenade in Beirut\u2019s central district.<\/span><\/p>\n

First, Khalil. This guy is really the project\u2019s M&E Coordinator, but this week, he\u2019s my extremely capable Unit Producer and translator. He gets along extremely well with everybody we work with across the country, and we never have a problem.<\/p>\n

And as the week unfolds, he\u2019s also acting food critic and cinema aficionado, since he can\u2019t stop reciting the closing scene in Avengers<\/a>, where Robert Downey, Jr.\u2019s Iron Man crashes to Earth, opens his weary eyes, and says, \u201cYou ever tried Shawarma? There\u2019s a shawarma joint about two blocks from here. I don\u2019t know what it is, but I wanna try it.\u201d (Back story on that revised ending on Entertainment Weekly<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Well, I try Khalil\u2019s favorite shawarma in shawarma\u2019s birthplace, and it\u2019s great!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

5. Byblos is irresistibly photogenic<\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

The rest of the film shoot takes me to five of Lebanon\u2019s six Governorates (or provinces). I\u2019m deep in Hezbollah country, where billboards of the Ayatollah Khomeini share real estate with ads for Pepsi and designer watches. And by Friday, I have more than enough quality footage to cut four short films.<\/p>\n

Saturday is a day off. What\u2019s brilliant is that long-time friends Stefano and Margherita live and work in Tyre, about an hour south. They pick me up and we drive up the coast to Byblos<\/a>. It\u2019s a respite, a quiet tourist town, and irresistibly photogenic. You’d think on my day off, I wouldn’t touch a camera, but the light was beautiful and I took 50+ photos . . . on my iPhone! Oh, and Byblos is a UNESCO world heritage site<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n

\n\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\n\t
\n\t\t[Show thumbnails]<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n\n<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s a perfect way to close out a great week, where I feel good about the footage I captured and learned a lot about the culture and people of Lebanon.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Beirut is a complete blast. The people are dynamic, the food crazy good, and in a week I’m all over the country, from the Syrian border in the north to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[377,395,245,256,244],"tags":[356,358,5,357,58,162],"class_list":["post-888","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-behind-the-scenes","category-development-shorts","category-field-production","category-good-ideas-rock","category-travel","tag-beirut","tag-canon-c100","tag-documentary","tag-lebanon","tag-steve-dorst","tag-usaid"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stevedorst.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/888","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stevedorst.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stevedorst.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stevedorst.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stevedorst.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=888"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/stevedorst.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/888\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1133,"href":"https:\/\/stevedorst.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/888\/revisions\/1133"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stevedorst.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=888"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stevedorst.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=888"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stevedorst.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=888"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}