When not making award-winning films or lecturing in film, theatre and media, Sam somehow finds time to spearhead a patchwork of festivals, organizations and workshops that bolster the storytelling ecosystem across this currently beleaguered country. He is the Founding Director of both Beirut Shorts (NDU) International Film Festival and the Beirut International Women Film Festival which returned last July after a lockdownenforced absence to continue its tradition of honouring seminal figures from the local cinema and arts scene. Sam’s first feature film VOID (WAYNON) was the Lebanese official submission for the Academy Awards 2015 (Oscars) for Best International Feature Film.