The Duchess of Cambridge revealed why she was left 'heartbroken' during the Bafta ceremony on Sunday.
- Duchess Catherine attended the event alongside husband Prince William, wearing a stunning gold embellished Alexandra McQueen gown.
- During the ceremony, the royal revealed she was left ‘heartbroken’ because of a documentary about a child born in the Syrian city of Aleppo after the war started, titled For Sama.
- This follows royal news that Prince William made a speech addressing supporting the need for ‘diversity’ in the film industry.
According to The Mirror, Duchess Catherine was especially moved by the documentary as Sama, the little girl in the documentary, was similar to Prince Louis in age at the time the footage was filmed.
The film follows the journey of Waad al Kateab during five years of her life in the rebel-held city as she falls in love, gets married and gives birth to her first daughter, Sama – who’s now four-years-old.
The filmmaker and journalist started documenting the crisis in Aleppo for Channel Channel 4 News in January 2016, while living in a makeshift hospital run by her doctor husband.
After the ceremony, the duchess sought out Waad to tell her how much of an inspiration she is.
Credit: Getty
“I was heartbroken. My boy is a similar age to Sama. You are a great inspiration for every woman”, the duchess told Waad.
For Sama won Best Documentary at the Baftas, after making history as the most nominated documentary in Bafta history. It has also been nominated for an Oscar by the Academy.
Waad Al-Kateab with her daughter, Sama, her husband Hamza (left), and fellow filmmaker Edward Watts (right) (Credit: Getty)
Dedicating the award to the people of Syria, Waad said in her speech, “We shouldn’t be here. In 2016, we were in a basement in a hospital when we heard the shelling of the bombs all around us.
“Hamza, me and Sema and we heard and we were hearing the shelling and the bombing all the time around us.
“In one moment in 2016 when I was in contact with Channel 4 News we even thought where we should bury our footage in case we didn’t make it. This needed to be saved.
And the #BAFTA for Best Documentary goes to … @forsamafilm pic.twitter.com/vsJ3xEqqvp
— For Sama (@forsamafilm) February 2, 2020
“We did the film and I’m so glad and I’m so honoured that I’m standing here.
“Thank you so much Bafta for recognising the film. As we speak now, the situation in Syria is still so bad.
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“As we’re speaking there is bombing and shelling on over 3.5 million civilians. These people they should hear your voice now, they should hear that Britain as a country won’t let that happen again.
“I know it’s so hard but this award I would dedicate it to the great Syrian people who are still suffering today. The great heroes of doctors, nurses, civil defence, so many other volunteer. I dedicate this award for them.”
Many guests became emotional during Waad’s speech, including Renée Zellweger and Game of Throne’s Kit Harington.
