Assem Swaid

About

Assem Swaid is a Syrian-Danish cultural entrepreneur, educator and singer who arrived in Denmark in 2015 and has since become a prominent voice in Danish-Syrian cultural life. He founded Finjan, a Copenhagen-based non-profit established in 2018 that bridges Syrian and Danish culture through film, music, food and debate, and co-founded the Syrian Doc Days documentary film festival, held at Cinemateket with support from the Danish Film Institute and the Nordic Culture Fund. Swaid also co-founded the Syrian Network in Denmark and has written for the Danish daily Information on Syrian refugee rights and Syria's reconstruction.

editions of Syrian Doc Days film festival held

2018

founding year for Finjan

What's new

2025-12
Kristeligt Dagblad portrayed Assem Swaid in connection with the one-year anniversary of Assad's fall - he visited his hometown Homs for the first time after ten years in Denmark.
2025-09
Syrian Doc Days held its 8th edition at Cinemateket in Copenhagen with screenings of six feature films and three short films from or about Syria.
2025-01
Swaid published a commentary in the newspaper Information, in which he argued that exiled Syrians best contribute to Syria's reconstruction by remaining in employment and education in their current country of residence.
2024-12
Swaid and Finjan colleague Agob Yacoub commented on Assad's fall in a debate article on Solidaritet.dk about the opposition's advance in Syria.
2025-06
Finjan held an Eid celebration with live music, photo exhibition and Syrian bazaar at Blågårds Plads in Copenhagen.