Peace by Chocolate
2021, NR, US, Drama/Comedy, 96 minutes
Florida Premiere
Filmmakers in Attendance
Juried Film
Arabic with English Subtitles
Director: Jonathan Keijser
Producers: Jonathan Keijser, Martin Paul-Hus, Kathy Wolf, Catherine Légar
Writers: Jonathan Keijser, Abdul Malik
Cast: Hatem Ali, Ayham Abou Ammar, Mark Camacho, Yara Sabri
After the bombing of his family’s chocolate factory, Tareq Hadhad, a charming young Syrian refugee, struggles to settle into small-town life in Nova Scotia, Canada. Despite moving to a new country, he is intent on pursuing his dream of becoming a doctor. But when his father, Issam, insists that he must focus on survival, Tareq and his family move toward a different yet familiar path: rebuilding Issam’s chocolate business.
To Tareq’s surprise, what first seemed like a nostalgic attempt to cling to the remnants of their old life becomes an overnight sensation, forcing him to choose between meeting the demands of an exponentially growing business and an offer to return to medical school. As father and son struggle to find common ground, the heightened tension between them threatens to tear the family apart..