Travel Shapes Storytelling

Bahraini Director Highlights Impact of Global Experiences

TDT | Manama

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Bahraini film director Hashim Sharaf says travel is less about discovering places and more about understanding people.

The award-winning filmmaker says his journeys have expanded his view of human emotions and cultures, influencing how he approaches storytelling on screen.

"It gave me another dimension: the dimension of real emotions," Sharaf told TDT. "When you see places and people with your own eyes, you see all their layers, their feelings and their details. The story changes for you, and so does your understanding of human beings."

Sharaf believes growing up within a single culture can naturally limit perspective, while travel exposes people to different ways of thinking and living.

"Every time you travel to a different culture, you discover another world," he said. "People live differently from you, and each experience adds a deeper understanding of humanity."

He noted that values such as hospitality can take on different meanings depending on where they are experienced.

"Hospitality in Japan is different from Saudi Arabia, Europe, Africa or Egypt," he said. "The more you experience these cultures firsthand, the more you understand their true meanings, and that naturally finds its way into your films."

Among the destinations that left a lasting impression on him, Sharaf highlighted Iceland for its visual impact and Hajj for its human significance.

"Iceland is a completely different visual language," he said. "It reminds you how vast the world is and how much beauty exists beyond what you already know."

On a more personal level, he described Hajj as one of the most influential experiences of his life.

"When you see people from all over the world gathered in one place, wearing the same clothes and standing as equals, you understand people differently," he said. "You understand the meaning of humanity on a much deeper level."

Despite travel's influence, Sharaf stressed that the stories he tells remain rooted in Bahrain.

"The core stories do not come from travel," he said. "We try to tell stories that sound like us and reflect our society. Travel gives us new ways of telling those stories, but the stories themselves come from here."

Rather than viewing travel as an escape, Sharaf sees it as part of the creative process.