“After generations of displacement, it is estimated that over six million Palestinians live in a global diaspora,” says the first shot of the short documentary Wifi Rider, directed by Roxy Rezvany. More than two million Palestinians now live in Jordan, where it is easier for Palestinian-owned businesses to grow as they don't have the restrictions of occupation.

Co-creator of fashion label tRASHY clothing and also known as Wifirider
on Instagram, Shukri Lawrence is a young Palestinian who lives in Amman, Jordan. The film covers his journey as he tackles issues ranging from occupation to displacement, stereotyping to discrimination, and cultural imperialism. More than a story about social media, Wifi Rider implicitly covers the forced displacement of Palestinians and gives an insight into the Jordan creative scene.

Growing up with his eyes on the West, thinking it’s a better place to evolve, Shukri now fully embraces his roots and established a queer fashion brand that reclaims the Palestinian/Arab identity and subverts what is considered different, cheap, and trashy in modern culture; an approach to creativity that inspired Rezvany: “What struck me especially was his openness about his own journey with wanting to move abroad in order to pursue his dreams,” she says, “but then realizing that part of making work on his own terms included being based in the place he recognizes as home.”

- Clotilde Nogues