ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — An award-winning Argentinian filmmaker will begin shooting a documentary about the lives of two Yazidi musicians, who have taught hundreds of people, on Friday. 

Filmmaker Pablo Toscu told Rudaw English on Thursday that he will begin shooting a documentary on the lives of  two young Yazidi musicians who had to flee Shingal as the Islamic State (ISIS) attacked in 2014, but returned to their hometown, following its liberation, to teach music.

Both musicians have taught music to over 350 students at Mirzo Music Institute since its establishment in summer 2019, according to Gani Mirzo, a Syrian Kurd whose foundation built the school with funding from the Spain-based Musicians Without Borders. 

The filmmaker said he wants to “show the daily lives of the two teachers in the middle of a devastated community. They [teachers] want to rebuild the lives of these people through music.”

Toscu will produce the documentary on his own, expecting to finish it within three months. Both musicians will talk about their daily lives: before and after the ISIS attack, recognised by many countries as a genocide against the Yazidi ethnoreligious minority.  

Toscu previously received an award for a documentary he co-produced with Migue Roth in 2019. Rudaw Media Network was the documentary’s media sponsor.
 
Over 100 students attend the institute, according to Mirzo. They are taught musical theories as well as how to play instruments like the saz, drum, oud, violin and piano, according to information provided by his foundation.

“These people love art, humanity and music. Yazidis never oppressed or killed anyone. Their religion is of peace,” Mirzo told Rudaw English, adding that “What we have done is like planting a flower in a desert.”

Photos: Rudaw, submitted