Unexpected

Repères & Vocations is an independent French association behind Unexpected Muslims, a documentary project exploring Muslim communities living far from major Islamic cultural centres. Since 2015, its team has travelled to meet communities whose members often live as minorities and work to preserve their religious and cultural identities. The films highlight the diversity of Islamic civilisation through personal stories, local histories and life on the ground.

The catalogue features documentaries about the Tzotzil people of Chiapas, Mexico; China’s Hui community; and young people in Bosnia-Herzegovina. A forthcoming film focuses on the Harari people of Harar, Ethiopia, and their efforts to safeguard the city’s Islamic heritage. The project also plans journeys to meet Crimean Tatars, Tibetan Muslims and Cham communities in Cambodia.

Repères & Vocations offers film screenings followed by discussions with the team, and invites audiences to arrange events in their own towns. Supporters can contribute donations to help fund new stories, explore field journals and photography, follow production updates, and find prints through the association’s shop.