Following the terrible blast at the Port of Beirut on August 4, we asked Paul Sabbagh, Managing Director of Wonderful Productions, how he envisions the future. The man is not happy and is not ready to forget nor forgive. However, he speaks of the 'Lebanese DNA' and says
Where were you on August 4 at 6:08 PM?
Thanks to Covid-19 and no production preparation planned for that week, we went home earlier than expected. Otherwise, it would have been a catastrophe in terms of casualties.
What is your first impression upon seeing the damages and desolating scenery that affected your workspace and Beirut?
Anger, sadness and feeling for revenge.
How is the morale?
Simply tired. Already managing Covid-19 bad effect on business, this came as a knock out. However, and as usual, we clean the dust and start again.
Will you be able to bounce back after the hardship?
No other choice but to bounce back, without forgetting what happened.
Have you already ready resumed work and under what conditions?
Thanks to our dedicated team that I call Gladiators, while helping out restoring our offices, we were working from home and preparing for upcoming projects.
What’s left when we lost almost everything?
Well it’s a tough question. To be honest, I don’t know how much strength we still have to rebuild, but there is always an inner strength that we are built with that allows to rise up and helps us move forward - I may call it the 'Lebanese DNA'.
Any additional message you’d like to add?
In a nutshell - I am not happy nor I want to be resilient and move on. I will not forget nor forgive. Will keep on my feet just to witness justice for those who lost their lives, houses and businesses.
