[act-ma] free film by palestinian youth 10/3 7pm

[Corry Banton]

Lucy Parsons Center Radical Film Night Presents:
VOICES BEYOND WALLS VIDEO SCREENING
            Youth Videos from Palestine, 2006 and 2007
Discussion to follow with filmmaker Lisa Nieves
7pm- FREE!
Bring food to share with members of D.O.W.N. (Dinners On Wednesday Night)
549 Columbus Ave.
www.lucyparsons.org
 
 
::Films::
 
1 The Necklace – El Oqd/ 2007/ 7:42 min: A group of teenagers living in Aida refugee camp, Bethlehem reenact the arrest of one of their friends who is 15 years old and being held without trial in an Israeli prison.  The boy’s best friend holds onto a necklace, a symbol of his friend and the hope for his return. The film highlights the issue of Palestinian child prisoners in Israeli jails but emphasizes that friendship extends beyond all borders and barriers.
 
2 Victory- Nasr/ 2007/ 7:36 : Each of the players on a Palestinian basketball team explains why he or she wants to “win for Palestine.” They recall their experiences living under occupation but resolve to work together to win the game.
 
3 Nablus Tragedy- Masat Nablus/ 2006/ 6:50 min :  Two girls from Balata camp, Nablus bring the viewer through their city. The narrator, Sondoz, explains how Israeli incursions and Palestinians’ inability to maintain their city have destroyed the landscape. The audience never sees the faces of the girls as they walk; they imitate the famous Palestinian cartoon figure, Hanthala, who is always depicted with his back to the audience, in resignation of all that occurs around him. 
 
4 Wishing to be a Bird- Ana Asfour/ 2006/ 1:42 min: The short film describes a young girl’s experience of catching a bird with her friends- and coming to identify with the bird. Using a combination of drawings, still photographs, and narrative, the film uses the symbol of the bird to express the dream of being free to see a world full of both happiness and sadness. 
 
5 Dreams of Jerusalem- Ahlam el Quds / 2007/ 8:00 min: Three best friends perform an act of resistance to fulfill their deep longing to visit Jerusalem- Holy City of Muslim, Christian, and Jewish faiths. In reality, they are not allowed to enter Jerusalem because they are Palestinian. The film features the girls’ paintings of Jerusalem hung on Israel’s separation wall. This narrative is set to a famous song about Jerusalem by Fayrouz (the Lebanese artist).
 
6 Theater of Stones- Masrah el Hejra / 2007/ 5:55 min: A school boy in the Jenin refugee camp recounts his life with a friend, interspersed with scenes of actual footage of an Israeli military incursion into Jenin. The film contextualizes stone-throwing as a form of resistance among young boys. 
The last scene takes place in the Freedom Theater, a youth arts center in the camp started by an Israeli woman. The film juxtaposes the reality of life under occupation with theater, leaving the viewer to decouple the act of resistance from performance.
 
7 Memories of Nakba- Zikrayat el Nakba/ 2006/ 3:28 min: Using drawings and real archival photos, the film explores the Nakba or “Catastrophe’ in 1948, the year Israel became a state and thousands of Palestinians were removed from their homes. 
 
8 Hope of Freedom- Amal el Horaya/ 2007/ 8:30 min: A Palestinan grandmother tells her grandson about her experience of the Nakba in an intimate interview. The children from Aida camp, Bethlehem reenact her account and become transplanted into their history, weaving together past, present, fiction and nonfiction. 
 
9 Palestinian Mother- Um Filistine / 2007/ 5:39 min: The story illustrates a comical situation where three brothers individually try to entice their mother to vote for their own political party (Hamas, Fateh and PFLP) in the upcoming Palestinian elections. The film humorously explores the subject of sectarian divisions fragmenting Palestinian society in recent times, and a mother’s insistence on the strength of Palestinian unity despite it all.
10 Return Our Happiness, AeedouLana Saadateena, 2007, 8:47 mi n: The film tells a story of a birthday party set against the tensions and restrictions of everyday life in occupied territory. Although the friends try to celebrate like children anywhere, their party is inevitably disrupted by circumstances beyond their control.
 


      
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