The Syrian director Madonna Adib, in Beirut, on Aug. 29, 2025. (Credit: Matthieu Karam/L’Orient-Le Jour)
Madonna Adib, an award-winning Syrian director and screenwriter, explores the intertwining of bodies, femininity and queer identity through her work. Her films spotlight questions of belonging, create space for queer narratives, and probe both personal and collective histories.In her latest film, Overnight, available on Arte’s platform, she follows a group of young revolutionaries at the dawn of the popular uprising that broke out in Syria in March 2011. Ward, a woman in her 20s, arrives in Damascus from Paris, where she studies architecture. Determined not to miss the revolution, she meets Youmna, an activist on the front lines of the revolt, closely monitored by the mokhabarat (intelligence services). As the country experiences unprecedented political fever, personal events disrupt Ward and add to the turmoil. Also watch: ‘Adnan,...
Madonna Adib, an award-winning Syrian director and screenwriter, explores the intertwining of bodies, femininity and queer identity through her work. Her films spotlight questions of belonging, create space for queer narratives, and probe both personal and collective histories.In her latest film, Overnight, available on Arte’s platform, she follows a group of young revolutionaries at the dawn of the popular uprising that broke out in Syria in March 2011. Ward, a woman in her 20s, arrives in Damascus from Paris, where she studies architecture. Determined not to miss the revolution, she meets Youmna, an activist on the front lines of the revolt, closely monitored by the mokhabarat (intelligence services). As the country experiences unprecedented political fever, personal events disrupt Ward and add to the turmoil. Also watch:...
