Weaving memory, exile, and return, a Hazara filmmaker tells her own story and creates space for many others—preserving her people’s history and reclaiming voice through film.
This film brings together my life story, my academic work, and my years of activism into a single narrative that moves between memory and analysis. Beginning in a rural village in Afghanistan and shaped by war, displacement, and life as a refugee, the film traces how I came to question the expectations placed on girls and, over time, found my voice in resisting them. It also documents my return to Afghanistan to record the stories of Hazara communities living through violence and loss, and the difficult process of making sense of those experiences through both filmmaking and scholarship. At its core, the film reflects on what it means to live at the intersection of gender and ethnic oppression, while also showing how storytelling can create connection, visibility, and a sense of belonging—for myself and for the communities whose stories I carry.
The film’s title, “براي قوما | For my people,” speaks to my work advocating for my people and the message I share to Hazaras across the world: to tell their stories.
| Film Information | Contact |
| Duration: 35 min Completion Date: May 01, 2026 | Jay Simpson jaysimpson.us@gmail.com |
Screenings
More information coming soon.
Want to host a screening?
If you’d like to arrange a screening of the film, please email jaysimpson.us@gmail.com and describe your event idea. We’re prepared to support film festivals, academic screenings, conferences, community events, storytelling workshops and more.