As children, they were taken from their parents and sent abroad, with the aim of one day returning as warriors who would overthrow the current regime in Iran. The Children of Camp Ashraf follows four of the children that were sent to Sweden. One of them is the Swedish-Iranian author Atefeh Sebdani.
Atefeh Sebdani debuted last year with the gripping memoir My Hand in Mine. It is a story about growing up with no one to hold on to but yourself, of abuses that are skillfully covered up and a society that time and again fails to see the vulnerable child. But it is also a story of a stubborn burning vitality and the courage to finally break free.
The documentary, which expands on Atefeh’s vital testimony of what it is like to escape from one country and grow up in another, will premiere on January 31st at the Gothenburg International Film Festival and on March 4 at the Tempo Documentary Festival.
Sara Moien the director of Children of Camp Ashraf, narrates the story of the environmental scientist Amir, the actress Parvin, the politician Hanif and the influencer Atefeh are four of over 700 children of MEK parents who were smuggled from Iraq to Western countries.
These children have experienced traumatic lives in foster families, orphanages and as child soldiers in Camp Ashraf, Iraq.