'The "Spider-Man" of Sudan' at Northwestern University in Qatar

Pulitzer Center Senior Editor Tom Hundley joined documentary filmmakers and grantees Phil Cox and Rafa Renas on September 5, 2022, at Northwestern University in Qatar for a community forum centering on Cox and Renas’ film, The “Spider-Man” of Sudan.

As part of their multi-day visit to the campus, Hundley, Cox, and Renas participated in class discussions on documentary production, gender, media, and other topics. They also shared multiple screenings of the film. Cox also led seminars on journalists’ safety.

The “Spider-Man” of Sudan, released in May 2022 by The Guardian, follows a protester-turned-social-media-emblem during the demonstrations in Khartoum against the country’s ruling military junta. The junta, thrust into power during a 2019 coup, supplanted the country’s first democratically-elected civilian government.

The “Spider-Man” of Sudan keeps people in frame and focus, tending to scenes of care, mutual aid, and resistance. “Spidey,” while not scaling buildings and leaping from billboards to avoid tear gas, works with some of the poorest children in the capital, helping them “know their worth and take pride in their country’s rich heritage.”

Watch the film in full here.