Asylum: Love Has No Borders

Directed by Anastasia Barnfather

Lital is a travelling artist, specialising in traditional arts, and Vinas is a musician, who creates his own instruments. What makes their love story unique is that they come from different worlds … Lital is Israeli and Vinas is Iranian. When they met in 2018 at a peace camp in Turkey, they were both on a journey of self-discovery, both experienced travellers and honed in survival skills. It was love at first sight and from that moment they were inseparable. With Israel and Iran bitterly opposed to each other, they were forced to become itinerant, travelling across Turkey and the Caucasus on short tourist visas. They travelled to Cyprus in 2019 and, so they would not be separated, they were forced to apply for asylum. With no support from the welfare services, they became homeless, living off the streets of Nicosia and taking handouts from charities. It was ignominious and dangerous. This is their story, a tale of hardship, isolation and peril … but mostly of love.