CPH:DOX 2026 - The Phantom Pain of Rojava

A man in a wheelchair rolls around looking for his prosthetic legs. No one has seen them. But it is also not the first time his playful friends have hidden them from him. ‘The Phantom Pain of Rojava’ is a post-war story from Rojava, an autonomous Kurdish region in northern Syria. For five years, Emmy-winning director Maryam Ebrahimi has followed four friends at a home for wounded soldiers. The result is an intimate portrait of resistance fighters after the battle.

Once hailed as heroes in the fight against ISIS, today they live with their amputated bodies and phantom pains, sheltered from a new and invisible drone war. Technology has changed the battlefield, moving the fight from the ground to the air. The Kurdish guerrilla soldiers are terrorized by the new, unmanned machines that monitor and attack them from thousands of kilometers away. With a deeply personal approach and unique access, Ebrahimi follows their struggle to rebuild their bodies and maintain their faith in the Women's Revolution they have dedicated their lives to protecting.