Salam Neighbor, released in 2016 by US film production companies Living on One Dollar and 1001 MEDIA, provides a poignant portrayal of life in Jordan’s Za’atari refugee camp, seven miles from the Syrian-Jordan border. The film follows American filmmakers Zach Ingrasci and Chris Temple who lived among 85,000 Syrians at Za’atari for a month, documenting the stories and experiences of the families they met. Of particular interest to educators may be the story of Raouf, a charming, street smart, 10-year-old boy whose trauma was invisible until the first day of school.

Ingrasci and Temple were the first filmmakers allowed by the UN to register and live in a tent inside the camp. In offering this immersive look at reality in a refugee camp, the film helps to humanize the refugee crisis and, through the voices of refugee families, to provide insights into the interrupted lives and traumas suffered in the journey of seeking refuge.