Occidental

As monuments continue to be toppled, relocated and reassessed all over the world, this documentary takes us to Dubai, Kuwait City, Abu Dhabi and Sanaa, questioning what defines monuments -what they are and what they could become, while retracing their non-linear biographical trajectories. In these cities, they have been virtually understudied and their stories remain invisible. Monumenting retraces them as we follow how participants to the research process engage in guessing rather than asserting what they know. Without noticing it, we are invited into a research journey in which diverse voices offer an unusual approach to cities in the Arabian Peninsula and a kaleidoscopic mapping of monuments and memory.

In an imaginary Los Angeles, a bunch of cow-boys, a group of activists, three hippies, four teenagers and a few gangsters are waiting for a major event that is supposed to happen tonight. Meanwhile, they talk about their values, dreams, ideal lovers, and about how politics affect their lives.