Peace by Chocolate adds a hint of sweetness to movie theatres

A movie about Nova Scotia’s most famous chocolatier is about to hit Canadian cinemas on Friday.

Co-written and directed by Halifax-native Jonathan Keijser, Peace by Chocolate is a full-length feature film that recounts the heartwarming tale of the Hadhad family, who soon after landing in Nova Scotia as Syrian refugees, founded and grew their small confection company into a world-class business.

“It’s just been amazing — the whole thing,” says Keijser about the nearly five year script-to-screen experience. “When you make something, you never know if people are going to respond to it or not, but we’ve been to almost 40 film festivals around the world — Japan, Cairo, all through the United States and the Midwest — and people seem to really respond to the message of the film.”

The story behind Peace for Chocolate may be familiar to many Atlantic Canadians, but audiences everywhere will now get the chance to draw inspiration from Keijser's dramatization about the Hadhad family's journey.

After patriarch Issam Hadhad’s popular chocolate factory was bombed in Damascus as a result of civil war in Syria, the family temporarily relocated to a refugee camp in Lebanon until they were accepted into Canada. Sponsored by an Antigonish family, Issam's aspiring son Tareq first came to Nova Scotia — bringing the rest of the clan shortly thereafter.

Once settled, Issam restarted his chocolate company — at the initial reluctance of Tareq, who wanted to focus on studying medicine rather than sell sweets. However, the business quickly blossomed into what is now an iconic East Coast company featuring a flagship store on the Halifax Harbourfront.

It was early on during the company's quick rise in Canada that Keijser recognized a cinematic potential in the Peace by Chocolate story.

“It wasn’t really something that I was looking for. I was just really drawn to the story,” admits Keijser, whose previous work had focused more on documentary films. “Often in our creative careers, we are always kind of looking at what we need to do (next) but I think sometimes you just have to let it come to you when it’s right and you can’t force it too much, and this was just something that was the right time and the right moment.”

Keijser reached out to Tareq Hadhad, and not only found the family willing to option their story to the filmmaker, but eager to share it with the rest of the world.

“It is pretty heartwarming to know that our story can inspire others in different forms and different mediums, and that we can use our voice to change the way that people look at refugees,” says Hadhad about the power of the film. “Not only is it the Hadhad story, it’s the community of Antigonish's story, it’s the province of Nova Scotia's story — it’s actually a Canadian dream story.”

Although Hadhad was an early consultant on the movie in order to help make it as authentic as possible, the businessman admits Keijser did an exceptional job capturing their narrative in the film, which was shot mostly on-location in Quebec.

“It was an experience that I will cherish forever,” adds Hadhad. “(But) I’m not really a movie expert so I was not really involved in the process, (but) the family did have a cameo scene — we travelled to Montreal — so you see us at the grand opening scene in the movie.”

Keijser agrees the entire production was a family affair and everyone was determined to get to the “emotional truth” of the movie’s many storylines.

“It’s not just the story of the Hadhads, it’s the story of many people, and the story of many refugees, and the story of many fathers and sons,” says Keijser. He adds although he worked with a Quebecois crew and much of the Syrian cast didn’t speak English, everyone's common goal assisted the production.

“(It) is a real testament to the power of storytelling and the power of art,” continues Keijser. “If you know why you are there and everybody’s on the same page and believe in what they are doing, people get it.”

Now with Peace by Chocolate opening May 6 in theatres across the country, the film is coming out at an especially significant time. 

After all, according to the United Nations, nearly 6 million people are believed to have fled Ukraine since Russia invaded the country in late February. With many of those refugees eventually destined for Canada, the story of Peace by Chocolate will surely shine as a beacon of light.

“It’s really important for Ukrainian refugees, for Afghan refugees, Syrian refugees — we are all the same, and regardless of the spot where we are born, we are all humans,” says Hadhad. “I think that (the movie) connects the dots for so many stories at the same time about refugees who are arriving just now (and I hope) everyone from around the world who comes to Canada, watches our story after they arrive here (and) it tells them what’s possible.”

Peace by Chocolate opens in Cineplex cinemas on May 6.

Attend the 7 p.m. screening at the Scotiabank Theatre Halifax on May 7 for a special Q&A featuring Tareq Hadhad and director Jonathan Keisjer following the movie.