OUR SUPPORT FOR THE DISPLACEMENT FILM FUND

The establishment of the Displacement Film Fund was announced in January 2025 at the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) by Cate Blanchett, actor, producer and Global Goodwill Ambassador for UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, together with IFFR’s Hubert Bals Fund. The Fund was established to support filmmakers whose careers have been disrupted by displacement, or who have a proven record of portraying the refugee experience through film. It was founding partner by MASTER MIND, UNIQLO, Dutch cultural foundation Droom en Daad, the Tamer Family Foundation, and Amahoro Coalition. The Hubert Bals Fund serves as the operational partner, and UNHCR as the strategic partner. The initiative launched as a pilot program to provide grants for short films that will be premiered at IFFR 2026.

UNIQLO, as a founding partner, contributed €100,000 to the Displacement Film Fund. Through this support for displaced filmmakers, UNIQLO aims to combine its “Made for All” philosophy with the power of film to amplify refugee stories and create opportunities to raise awareness and engagement around refugee issues.

Displacement Film Fund filmmakers, from left to right: Hasan Kattan, Maryna Er Gorbach (credit: Rafal Nowak), Mohammad Rasoulof, Shahrbanoo Sadat, Mo Harawe The filmmakers and projects to be supported by this pilot round of the Displacement Film Fund were announced on 8 May 2025. The five short film production grants will be bestowed to Maryna Er Gorbach (Ukraine), Mo Harawe (Somalia), Hasan Kattan (Syria), Mohammad Rasoulof (Iran) and Shahrbanoo Sadat (Afghanistan).

May 23, 2025, Cannes - A panel event was held at the Cannes Film Festival regarding the Displacement Film Fund (DFF), which UNIQLO supports. Speakers included actor, producer and UNHCR Global Goodwill Ambassador Cate Blanchett; Maryna Er Gorbach (Ukraine) and Mo Harawe (Somalia), two of the selected filmmakers supported by the fund; and Rajendra Roy, Chief Curator of Film at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York. The event was moderated by International Film Festival Rotterdam’s Managing Director Clare Stewart, and the panelists discussed the intersection of filmmaking and refugee support.

June 16, 2025, Tokyo - Fast Retailing joined with UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, to showcase its global refugee support activities at an event at the Osaka Expo. The event, held in advance of World Refugee Day on June 20, featured a panel discussion to celebrate the third anniversary of UNIQLO's PEACE FOR ALL charity T-shirt project, and a spotlight on UNIQLO’s founding support for the Displacement Film Fund to support refugee filmmakers. Clare Stewart, Managing Director of the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR), who leads the management of the fund through HBF, and Hasan Kattan from Syria, one of the first five filmmakers selected to receive a grant through the fund also spoke at the event.

The works of the filmmakers had the world premiere at the International Film Festival Rotterdam on January 30, 2026.

Allies in Exile - Hasan Kattan

Rotation - Maryna Er Gorbach

Sense of Water - Mohammad Rasoulof

Super Afghan Gym - Shahrbanoo Sadat

Whispers of a Burning Scent - Mo Harawe