Plot

At the height of the war in Iraq, thousands of Iraqis were fleeing the country each day. Among them was Mohamed, a 23-year-old from Baghdad, whose strikingly Western appearance and manner resulted in threats to his life. Forced into exile in Syria, Mohamed crosses path with Jennifer, a freelance video journalist from Brooklyn, New York, who begins to document his life as a refugee. Drawn into the fantasy world he invents to escape his harsh reality, Jennifer forms a unique friendship with Mohamed, embarking on a series of adventures around the city of Damascus. From crashing presidential referendum parties to staging elaborate photo shoots in the old city, the pair creates welcome distractions from the uncertainty of Mohamed's situation. Jennifer returns to Brooklyn, but can't stop thinking about the new friend she left behind. The line between journalist and subject is crossed as she becomes determined to help him start a new life. Against the advice of her colleagues and loved ones, Jennifer goes back to Syria with a mission to get Mohamed asylum in a safe country. What follows is a journey that proves to be more than either bargained for - as illusions are shattered, a friendship is tested, and one man struggles to attain the 'American Dream.'—Jennifer Utz