Angie Obeid’s PACIFIC Joins the Auteur Cinema Archive

The Auteur Cinema Archive is proud to announce the inclusion of PACIFIC (2019) by Lebanese filmmaker Angie Obeid—an intimate, observational short documentary that transforms a Brussels apartment building into a quiet monument of human tension, solitude, and invisible histories.

In PACIFIC, Obeid turns the camera inward—both literally and metaphorically. The film was shot in the building where she lived, a modernist high-rise in Brussels that looms above the city like a silent witness. Reddish hallways, the echo of footsteps, and the distant skyline give form to an atmosphere of disquiet. When she reads a news article describing her building as the "suicide tower," a subtle shift occurs. Without sensationalism or overt narrative, PACIFIC becomes an exploration of space, unease, and the lingering presence of those who are no longer there.

Angie Obeid’s approach is restrained yet piercing. She documents the building with a gaze that is both tender and haunted—allowing the architecture and ambient sound to speak volumes. The strength of PACIFIC lies in its ability to evoke deeply personal, even existential questions through a minimal yet poetic visual language. In its silence, the film becomes profoundly eloquent.

Curator Kris De Meester on the inclusion:

"PACIFIC is a powerful example of what happens when an auteur dares to look closely—without filter, without noise. Angie Obeid’s sober, observant approach allows space for reflection, letting the viewer step into the haunting stillness of this place. It’s documentary as quiet confrontation, as architecture of feeling. Few films this short stay with you this long."

After premiering at Visions du Réel in Nyon, PACIFIC went on to screen at Hot Docs, Carthage Film Festival, and Aswan International Women Film Festival, where it won Best Director. It also received the Silver Tanit for Best Short Documentary in Tunisia and the Best Documentary Short Film award at the Brussels Independent Film Festival—testament to its resonant, transnational impact.

By including PACIFIC in the Auteur Cinema Archive, we celebrate not only the film’s subtle brilliance but also Angie Obeid’s continued contribution to personal, socially rooted cinema. Her work is a reminder that the most compelling stories often lie not in what is said—but in what is barely heard.

https://www.auteurarchive.com