TAFF Online Shorts Programme 2 + Panel Discussion
Date: July 25
Time: 7pm Eastern Time
A still from Towards the Sun
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Towards the Sun
Countries: Canada, Lebanon Director: Nour Ouayda Length: 17 mins Synopsis: You are now in the main hall of the National Museum in Beirut. A guard reminds you that you are encouraged to touch the archeological objects. A voice in your headset suggests that you lick the stone. You are now facing a hole in the wall on the lower left corner of a mosaic. The voice in your headset indicates that it was made by a sniper. Out of curiosity, you dial 1-9-9-1 to listen to the rest of the story. |
A still from In the Middle
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In the Middle
Countries: Yemen, Qatar, Russia Director: Mariam Al Dhubhani Length:14 mins Synopsis: In a rarely seen perspective of war, we follow Ali—a Yemeni soldier on tour in the temporary capital of Aden. Leaving his hopes, dreams, and education behind to join the military, Ali dutifully sits at his checkpoint, performing a mundane task that he is clearly overqualified to do. His story represents the majority of youth in the country, people who are unable to just ‘live’, but instead are forced to continually struggle to survive. |
A still from Four Acts for Syria
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Four Acts for Syria
Countries: Syria, Germany Director: Waref Abo Qaba Length: 14 mins Synopsis: Syrian history has been multicultural for centuries. This film is a voyage through Syrian culture until today’s insanity. It is a message of peace and hope for the Syrian people. |
A still from The Return of Osiris
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The Return of Osiris
Country: Palestine Director: Essa Grayeb Length: 14 mins Synopsis: On June 9, 1967, Egyptian President at the time, Gamal Abdel Nasser appeared on television and radio to inform the Egyptian citizens of their country’s defeat. During the speech, he also announced his resignation. For many, Nasser's speech was the first hint at the full scope of loss and disillusionment with the pan-Arab vision he led. The film weaves together dozens of scenes that feature the speech from Egyptian films and television series produced between 1972-2016. The found footage excerpts were edited to reconstruct Nasser's speech of resignation according to the original text. |
A still from I Have Seen Nothing, I have Seen All
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I Have Seen Nothing,
I Have Seen All Countries: Syria, Sweden Director: Yasser Kassab Length: 20 mins Synopsis: After talking about the end of the war in Syria and the start of the reconstruction phase, Yaser and his family find themselves compelled to deal with the transfer of graves from public parks in Aleppo. Thousands of kilometers separate Yaser from his parents in Aleppo. With what these two places carry of contradiction is reflecting the way they both deal with what happened. |
A still from Compressed
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Compressed
Countries: Syria, France Director: Ali Dawwa Length: 8 mins Synopsis: Compressed highlights the work of Khaled Dawwa, a Syrian artist, who was in one of the Syrian regime's prisons. He met many young people in the prison, their only guilt and the great crime was that they had dreamed of, and asked for a better future. Released from prison, Khaled, now lives in France. He considers himself a hope for all those who are still in prison and expresses their voice and suffering through his sculptures. For Khaled, love and revolution are inseparable. |
Online Panel Discussion:
Defying Politics, Towards Pan-Arabism in Cinema:
The Role of Transnational Cinemas and Film Festivals in Creating a New Arab Cinema
Image courtesy of Azza Abbaro
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Abstract:Given the recent new wave of Arab cinema, bolstered by co-productions and initiatives around the world, particularly in film festivals, this panel aims to examine the recent wave of Arab films in international film festivals through the lens of a pan-arab renaissance. Recent co-production initiatives, transnational talent development and pan-Arab distribution, in particular, are defying national borders and are reinvigorating and redefining preconceived notions of what constitutes Arab cinema.
Moderated by: Karam Masri Speakers:
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Panel sponsored by:
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German productions co-presented by:
Co-presented by:
