Letters2MaybeAn American Tale
a film by Yehuda Sharim
This film is based on events and dreams that took place in Houston, TX and Merced, CA from 2015-2020
A new arrival from Iraq, a life-long “undocumented” immigrant from Togo, a community leader, and a group of activists who aim to force ICE agents out of their city are among the untrained cast portraying the impossible challenges and unflinching demand for justice and tenderness. Set in rural America, Letters2Maybe explores the voices of immigrant communities, the poor, and the vulnerable in the midst of daily devastation and culminating strife, offering a shared manual for equality and a renewed sense of solidarity in a divisive country. It embraces a kaleidoscopic style of storytelling to highlight how memories, such as recollections of home and its absence, complete with events that are not necessarily captured or recorded.
Letters2Maybe mixes and layers the experiences of immigrants and refugees over a span of five-years to construct a cinematic letter of intimate defiance. It navigates the precarious everyday realities of absence, movement, migration, and safety.
Yehuda Sharim, Director, Filmmaker and Editor
Yehuda Sharim is a writer, filmmaker, and poet. His work focuses on the relationship between the quotidian and poetic. He works closely with cast members, improvising with daily events and experiences as a tactic to reclaim divinity. What is the role of filmmaking if not to reimagine the movement of our souls, the awakening and reawakening of our spirits, against all odds?Sharim’s films have appeared in film festivals, artistic venues, and universities across the world. While excavating emotional and intimate histories of border crossing and the migration of souls, my work provides a comparative study of displacement, shedding light on the changing constructions of home and belonging. He currently serves as an Assistant Professor in the Program of Global Art Studies, University of California, Merced.
