Reel Palestine, a pop-up film series showing the latest in independent and alternative Palestinian films will present its annual film festival in the UAE from January 19 to January 27. The films will be screened in collaboration with Cinema Akil in Alserkal Avenue, Dubai, the Sharjah Art Foundation and Warehouse 421 and Manarat Saadiyat in Abu Dhabi.
The Reel Palestine film festival in the UAE was launched in 2015. It aims to go beyond stereotypical media coverage of the violence and conflicts in Palestine and beyond the wall to tell authentic stories about Palestinian culture and tenacity, and the difficult, emotional and inspirational moments of life under occupation. The films selected this year are about underground musicians, Palestinian women bonding over embroidery, migration, imprisonment and family traditions.
Reel Palestine Film Festival 2018 schedule:
The festival opens with Wajib, directed by Annemarie Jacir at 7pm on January 19 at The Yard in Alserkal Avenue. The film explores the relationship between a Palestinian from Nazareth and his Europe based son. The screening will be preceded by a SlideFest presentation by Palestinian photographer Tanya Habjouqa in collaboration with Gulf Photo Plus.
Ghost Hunting, by Raed Andoni, on January 20 at Sharjah Art Foundation and January 26 at Alserkal Avenue. The documentary features former inmates of the Moskobiya interrogation centre in Jerusalem, like Andoni himself, in a traumatic and cathartic reenactment of their experiences.
1948: Creation and Catastrophe, by Ahlam Muhtaseb and Andy Trimlett, on January 21 at Alserkal Avenue. The Arabic and English film tells the story of the establishment of Israel through the moving personal recollections of Palestinians and Israelis, offering insights into what drives the Israeli-Palestinian conflict today.
The Villagers by Nidal Badarny and You Reap What You Sow by Alaa Ashkar on January 22 at Alserkal Avenue. Badarny’s short film is an absurd Palestinian love story alongside the absurd ‘separation wall’; and France-based Ashkar’s film is an intimate story about the evolution of his identity from his childhood in Galilee to his travels as an adult.
Screening of short films The Parrot by Darin J. Sallam and Amjad Al-Rasheed, Ayny by Ahmed Saleh, Five Boys and a Wheel by Said Zagha, Drowning Man by Mahdi Fleifel and Beneath the Earth by Sami Alalul at Alserkal Avenue on January 23.
The Parrot is about a Tunisian family that moves into a home in Haifa hastily vacated by Palestinians in 1948 and finds a talking parrot who tells stories about the past. Ayny tells the true story of two boys who run away from home to chase their dream. Zagha’s film is a contemplation of human values, while Fleifel looks at the trauma of exile. Beneath the Earth showcases the work, personal stories and political voices of underground musicians in Palestine.
Stitching Palestine by Carol Mansour on January 24 at Warehouse 421 and January 25 at Alserkal Avenue. The film tells the stories of 12 Palestinian women from different walks of life connected by the common thread of the ancient art of embroidery.
Fire at Sea by Gianfranco Rosi on January 23 at Manarat Saadiyat, Abu Dhabi. This documentary, in English and Italian, which won the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival, and was nominated for the Academy Awards, looks at life in the Italian port town of Lampedusa, where thousands of African and Middle Eastern migrants arrive every day.
The festival closes with the screening of Wajib on January 27 at the Sharjah Art Foundation.
