SECOND WIND (سطر جديد)

Few stories ever emerge out of Lebanon’s notorious prison system, let alone stories about the difficulties of starting a new life after prison. Four ex-prisoners living in a rehabilitation center in the Bekaa Valley of Lebanon share their personal stories and perspectives on how the experience of prison and the criminal record system shaped their lives, and how far they’re willing to go to be given a chance to a new start.

Published in 2022
Directed / Filmed by: Nessim Stevenson & Tariq Keblaoui
Edited by: Tariq Keblaoui
Music by: Julia Sabra & Fadi Tabbal - Tunefork
Funded by: Search For Common Ground
Production: What Took You So Long?

GEORGE & THE WHALES

A documentary portrait of a Tongan whale-watching guide called George, and of the humpback whales that spend their summers in the warm waters around the islands of Vava'u.

We wanted to make a film that reflects on the content tranquility that a connection with the ocean and some of it's largest inhabitants can bring. The environment and it's protection shouldn't be political.


Published in 2019
Directed / Edited by: Nessim Stevenson
Underwater / Aerial: Karim Iliya
Music by: Julia Sabra & Fadi Tabbal - Tunefork
Whale song recorded by: Roger Payne - Ocean Alliance
Production: What Took You So Long?

HURININ - PEOPLE OF THE SEA

During Namibia’s colonial rule, the Topnaar sub-clan known as the Hurinin (‘the sea-people’) were forced out of the coastal areas, disrupting their centuries-old reliance on ocean resources. In contemporary Namibia, the Topnaar continue to be excluded from decision-making on the ocean.

The film shows how One Ocean Hub has fostered connections between the Topnaar community and national and international actors to ensure more inclusive decision-making on the ocean. The film also depicts how songs, poems and dances specifically related to fishing and the ocean were once an integral part of Topnaar culture.

Published in 2023
Directed by: Fanny Lindström
Produced by: Nessim Stevenson
Camera: Nessim Stevenson, Fanny Lindström
Editing: Fanny Lindström
Production: Kogia & What Took You So Long?

WAYNAK

Waynak began as a documentary series to change the narrative on the refugee ‘crisis’ by telling collaborative and inspiring stories of people working together across the world’s refugee, host, and volunteer populations. This series turned into a movement when it was implemented into the 30,000 strong volunteer community of MakeSense, a Paris-based social entrepreneur incubator. These stories served as the centrepiece for screenings, hackathons, hold-ups, all designed to facilitate collaboration and innovation in solving the most pressing issues in the refugee ‘crisis’.
Click here to view individual episodes.


Published in 2016
Directed by: Chris Kousouros
Camera: Nessim Stevenson, Ghinwa Daher, Chris Kousouros
Editing: Ghinwa Daher & Chris Kousouros
Produced by: MakeSense
Production: What Took You So Long?

FISH MAMMIES

This short film presents the story of a Ghanaian fish worker, Peace Gavour Abla, and discusses the challenges faced by Ghanaian women living in coastal communities. The film highlights the importance of improving the protection of women’s human rights in small-scale fisheries and holding governments and businesses accountable. Around the world, women play a critical role along the entire economic value chain in small-scale fisheries, but their voice is often not heard. In Ghana, the One Ocean Hub together with civil society partners organises a series of workshops, aiming to better understand the barriers and opportunities to protecting the human rights of women in small-scale fisheries.

Published in 2022
Directed, Filmed & Edited by: Nessim Stevenson
Production: What Took You So Long?

CENTRAL AFRICAN FOREST INITIATIVE

CAFI, The Central African Forest Initiative, is a collaborative partnership supported by the UNDP, between 6 Central African nations and a coalition of donors. It’s aim is to recognise and preserve the value of the forests in the region to mitigate climate change, reduce poverty and contribute to sustainable development. 
In 2017, we, at What Took You So Long?, produced a series of short videos for CAFI, which we filmed in the forests of Gabon. One of the videos, a 6 minute short, narrated by Marcel, a Gabonese actor and filmmaker, was screened at the COP23 in Bonn. A social-media-friendly English version of the video was narrated by Hollywood actor Djimon Hounsou. We also produced a 6-part web series for CAFI, a version of which was screened at the Paris Climate Summit.

Published in 2017
Directed/Edited by: Nessim Stevenson
Camera/Producer: Clara Wetzel
Production: What Took You So Long?

THE CEDARS OF LEBANON

The ‘Cedars of God’ - in the mountains of northern Lebanon, is one of the last vestiges of the legendary cedar forests that once thrived across Mount Lebanon and the rest of the levant in ancient times. After centuries of persistent deforestation, at the hands of numerous civilisations including the Pheonicians, Israelites, Egyptians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Romans, and Turks, the extent of these forests has been markedly reduced.
This is the story of this historic forest, told by Dr. Youssef Tawk, a doctor from the near-by town of Bcharreh. 

Published in 2017
Directed/Camera 2/Edited by: Nessim Stevenson
Camera: Ghinwa Daher
Sound: Chris Kousouros
Drone: Karim Iliya
Production: What Took You So Long?

MONGOLIA

In September 2015, after finishing my BA in media production, I set off to Mongolia for three months to work on short documentaries for a local TV news channel. My work there took me around the country, from the arid landscapes of the far West to the snow-covered Gobi Desert in the South. This is a compilation of some of my personal favourite footage from my time there.

Published in 2016
Camera/Editing: Nessim Stevenson
Music: Sedaa - Mongul Nutag

NOWTHIS | ELEPHANT ORPHANAGE

Produced in collaboration with NowThis, in partnership with Samsung, this is a short 360 video about the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust’s elephant orphanage in Nairobi, Kenya.

Published in 2017
Directed by: Bob Geile
Camera: Nessim Stevenson & Bob Geile
Produced by: NowThis