All You See

What if from one day to the next, you’re no longer seen, but instead are stared at? The leading characters of this fascinating narrative have ended up in a new world where suddenly nothing seems to align. In their new lives in the Netherlands, they unintentionally provoke reactions on a daily basis. Even after many years, they still hear the same questions over and over again: where are you from, do you speak Dutch, do you tan in the sun? While contemplating what it means to belong, who gets excluded, and how outsider status is continually reaffirmed, Padidar’s film foregrounds the sensation of being looked at. Honest, painful, and humorous encounters with three other ‘newcomers’ to the Netherlands are stylistically interwoven between Padidar’s own personal history, opening up a vulnerable space of articulation with global resonance. A confessional collage with no simple outs, the film turns the spotlight on all of us, while simultaneously asking: who is “us”?