Huda’s Salon

Directed by Hany Abu-Assad
2021 | PG21 | Feature Thriller | 88’ 
Arabic with English subtitles 

Based on real events, Huda’s Salon is a feminist thriller, where two women fight for their freedom. Nadia, a young mother goes to Huda’s salon in Bethlehem, for a haircut. But this ordinary visit turns sour when Huda, after having put Nadia in a shameful situation, blackmails her to have her work for the secret service of the occupiers, and thus betray her people.

Screened with:

Trumpets in the Sky

Directed by Rakan Mayasi
2021 | PG | Short Feature | 15’
No dialogue 

Lebanon today - the war in Syria is next door. A once dreamy and undisturbed meadow changes drastically in the eyes of Boushra, 14 years - who returns from work picking potatoes to learn that she will get married. A poetic visual contemplation on landscapes and the complexity of human traditions. 

Little Palestine, Diary of a Siege

Directed by  Abdallah Al-Khatib
2021 | PG13 | Documentary | 89’
Arabic with English subtitles 

The district of Yarmouk (Damascus, Syria) sheltered the biggest Palestinian refugee camp in the world from 1957 to 2018. When the Syrian revolution broke out, the regime saw Yarmouk as a refuge of rebels and resistance and set up a siege from 2013 on. Between 2011 and 2015, Abdallah Al-Khatib and his friends documented the daily life of the besieged inhabitants, who decided to face bombing, displacement and hunger with rallying, study, music, love and joy.

Screened with:

The Jump

Directed by Shuruq Harb
​2020 | PG | Short Experimental | 10’
Arabic with English subtitles 

‘The Jump’ explores the psychological terrains of leaping into the void, its potential sense of cosmic freedom, physical thrill, suspension and definitive end. The two main film protagonists- author, literary professor Wafa Darwish and psychologist, trauma healer Laila Atshan, reflect on their own experiences of seeking freedom and overcoming the limitations of their disability. 

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Farha​

Directed by Darin J. Sallam
2021 | PG13 | Feature | 92’
Arabic with English subtitles

Inspired by true events, Farha tells the story of a young girl whose dreams change from seeking an education in the city to survival in Palestine 1948.

'Farha' Director, Darin J. Sallam will be present for a live Q&A on Saturday 29th of January at 7:00pm and on Sunday 30th of January at 9:15pm.

Jordanian writer and director Darin J. Sallam holds an MFA in Cinematic Arts from the Red Sea Institute for Cinematic Arts (RSICA), affiliated with the University of Southern California (USC). To her credit are five award winning short films including STILL ALIVE (2010), THE DARK OUTSIDE (2012) and THE PARROT (2016), all of which received multiple awards and screened in internationally acclaimed film festivals worldwide. Her debut feature film, FARHA, had its world premiere in the official selection of the 46th Toronto International Film Festival 2021 and was selected at Busan IFF, Rome FF and the Red Sea IFF.

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Al Garib / The Stranger

Directed by  Ameer Fakher Eldin
2021 | PG13 | Feature | 112’
Arabic with English subtitles 

In a small village in the occupied Golan Heights, the life of a desperate unlicensed doctor who is going through an existential crisis, takes another unlucky turn when he encounters a man wounded in the war in Syria. Overturning all community expectations in times of war and national crisis, he ventures forth to meet his newly found destiny.

   Screened with:

Siri Miri

Directed by  Luay Awwad
2020 | PG | Short Comedy | 6’
Arabic with English subtitles 

Sick of their routine-run life, two millennials turn to the help of Siri in order to spice up their monotonous life, only to find out that Siri is oblivious to the unique situation they live in.

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As I Want

Directed by Samaher Alqadi
2021 | PG16 | Documentary | 88’
Arabic with English subtitles 

Cairo, January 25, 2013. A string of severe sexual assaults takes place during a rally celebrating the second anniversary of the revolution. Egyptian women decide to take action. The future of their country depends on their individual emancipation.

 Director, Samaher Alqadi will be present for a virtual Q&A on Thursday 3rd of February at 7:00 pm.​

 Screened with:

Mariam

Directed by Dana Durr
2020 | PG | Short Animation |  5’
No Dialogue 

After losing her precious paradise, Mariam undergoes a journey to find knowledge and strength through her heritage and culture.

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Waiting for Gaza

Directed by  Guillaume Kozakiewiez
2020 | PG | Documentary | 74’
Arabic, French with English subtitles

Five years after their Cannes selection, the twins Arab and Tarzan Abu Nasser prepare their second feature film. Exiled in Paris, they confine themselves in their 82 ft2 studio where they recreate a mental Palestine.

Screened with:

Gaza: A Play Before The Bombs

Directed by Roger Hill
2021 | PG | Short Documentary | 13’
Arabic with English subtitles ​

Set in the al-Mishal Cultural Center in Gaza before it was destroyed by an Israeli air strike on August 9, 2018 and filmed over a 4 year period. The film follows Abeer Ahmed, a young woman growing up in the Jabaliya Refugee Camp as she and the other members of her cast and crew prepare to put on a play. ​

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Jaffa, Mother of The Stranger

Directed by Raed Duzdar
2019 | PG | Documentary | 71’
Arabic with English subtitles 

This poignant film is based on the oral histories of Palestinian elders from Jaffa, an important economic and cultural hub in the region before the Nakba. These storytellers, most living in exile, were born and raised in Jaffa before 1948. Their memories describe a thriving daily life in Jaffa and they also share testimonies of what became of their lives when the city came under attack in 1948.

Screened with:

They Were Nomads

Directed by Carlo Concina & Cristina Maurelli
2020 | PG | Short Documentary | 25’
Arabic with English and Italian subtitles 

​The Bedouin minority situated between Jerusalem and Jericho in the Occupied Palestinian Territories of the West Bank in Israel suffer particularly from the loss of their identity, forced to remain locked down in that territory and to become sedentary. The film is a unique testimony and tells the life of a community that normally has no voice, reporting the point of view of those who are considered to be second class citizens.

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In Exile - Shorts

This selection of short films presents stories on the experience of displacement and the re-identification with one’s origin through difficult and enduring moments. This program included short films: Baladna, Omar, Mariam, Son of the Streets, Stones in Hand, Omar and Barzakh. 

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Love In Resistance - Shorts 

When enclosed restrictions are a lived daily reality, characters seek love, either that of a distant partner, a lost child, or in a community space to find a freedom beyond the physical borders, a theme of hope and love in this this set of shorts  ​featured films include: Black Listed, Layl, Lovesick In the West Bank, 120 KM, Liwan : A Story of Cultural Resistance.

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