My Mother’s Fig Tree

What begins as a search for answers about the Lebanese Civil War evolves into an intimate journey into the director’s relationship with his father after he left the country, and following his mother’s death, an attempt to piece together memory and unresolved emotions and speaking to our parents before it’s too late.

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Returning to Lebanon after my mother’s death, I find myself facing not only my father but everything that remained unspoken between us. This film is a personal attempt to confront grief, distance, and the memories we inherit, while questioning how a country marked by war continues to shape the people we love. More than seeking answers, I hope to preserve a conversation before it becomes impossible.

• Director/Producer: Charbel J.Habib
• 1st Assistant Director: Mariam dib awada
• ⁠DOP: Issam Sleiman
• ⁠additional Image: Charbel Habib
• ⁠Sound engineer & Mixer : Geddy Kamel
• ⁠Editor: Mia Alouf
• ⁠coloring : Aladin benfatna
• ⁠composer : Marcin Mazurek
• ⁠Written by : Charbel J.Habib & Mariam dib awada
• ⁠CAST: Joseph Habib & Charbel Habib

• Production Manager: Chady Nassar
• ⁠Assistant Production Manager: Charbel Chamoun

• With support of Al-Adab & Feux d’artifice

Minutes

2026

Release

Production

Lebanon
France

Bio – Filmography

Charbel is a filmmaker with a strong focus on documentary storytelling. He studied cinema for seven years between Lebanon and Paris, and holds a master’s degree in Documentary Filmmaking from Université Paris 8, where he worked under the guidance of director Raphaël Girardot.
His work explores themes of migration, memory, and identity, often blending personal narratives with broader social and historical reflections. Though still at an early stage in his career, he is currently developing his second short documentary as well as his first feature-length documentary, both at different stages of production.
Beyond filmmaking, Charbel was selected as a jury member for the Gen Z Audience Award at the 2025 Berlinale Co-Production Market.
He is also the co-founder of Al-Adab: Ciné-Club du Monde Arabe, a Paris-based film club dedicated to Arab cinema, created as a space for dialogue, discovery, and exchange among cinephiles, students, and film professionals.
In addition, he serves on the programming boards of the Beirut Shorts International Film Festival and the Beirut International Women Film Festival.