Samo alum Marco Bollinger shares Syrian documentary with wwstu

On Tuesday, Oct. 9, Samo alumnus Marco Bollinger (’97) paid a visit to Barnum Hall to speak to Samo students. The filmmaker, who spent three years living in Lebanese refugee camps, showed Samo his award-winning documentary “Safezone,” which is based on the lives of Syrian refugee children.Bill Wishart, Samo’s film class teacher, attended the talk along with all of his film classes. Many of the film students were touched by the documentary, inspired to know that a Samo alumnus had done something powerful. Emerson Langlois-Ulrich (’19) is a film student who wants to pursue film in his future. Langlois-Ulrich was one of the many students impacted by the documentary. “To me, the film provides inspiration for students to choose selfless careers to help the world, just like Marco did. In other words, the film SafeZone pressures us to keep our eyes open to the world around us,” Langlois-Ulrich said. Bollinger is also a former water polo player who played for coach and teacher Matthew Flanders. Flanders, a big fan of Bollinger’s work, was proud to introduce the successful Samo alumnus to Barnum Hall. “I loved his presentation, it showed the passion he has for his work. I think it is important for alumni to come back to Samo to show the multitude of different paths your life can take, and to redefine the concept of success and happiness [for students],” Flanders said.Growing up in Venice and attending Santa Monica schools for the duration of his childhood, Bollinger had always been exposed to a liberal environment. As the Syrian civil war began to progress, he was particularly affected by the atrocities he was hearing and seeing in the media. “I was horrified by what these people were going through, and I just became numb. It started messing with my head and my work, and I had to start ignoring it to live my life,” Bollinger said during his speech at Barnum Hall. Because of his pain and concern for the people of Syria, Bollinger decided it was up to him to make a change.“I read an article in the “New York Times” about Damascus and Aleppo going dark. I felt really frustrated that they weren’t spending more time conveying real human stories. If I wasn’t willing to go do something, I didn’t feel like I had the right to be frustrated,” Bollinger said.The lack of positivity and optimism in the “New York Times” article was Bollinger’s “aha” moment. He immediately knew he had to humanize the people of Syria in his work. When he first arrived in the Middle East, Bollinger was lost. He was an American living in a Syrian refugee camp without a single word of Arabic under his belt, nor any ties to the Middle East. But, as he began to familiarize himself with the children and the people of Zhale Refugee Camp, Bollinger remembered what he was there to do. The filmmaker and his partner, Jody Livingston, had a similar vision about focusing on the stories of children, but without politicizing their work.Bollinger used his stories to show the opportunities Samo students have once they leave high school and enter the workforce, broadening the minds of those considering their options outside of Santa Monica. The American filmmaker described a young girl he had encountered during his time at the refugee camp in Zhale to Samo’s Barnum Hall. He used the short story to depict how important it is for high schoolers to think outside of their bubble and expand their horizons when considering options for their future.Junior Aidan Blain (’20) attended the talk on Oct. 9 and was inspired by Bollinger’s passion and interest in helping Syrian refugee children, and the impact he has made with his documentary. “Marco Bollinger’s presentation was very inspiring for students. Learning about a person who thinks outside the box once they leave Samo really gives you a different perspective on how privileged we are here and how people are making massive impacts outside of high school,” Blain said.Bollinger is currently on his way back to the Middle East, and has yet to determine his return.