movies

The Boston Palestine Film Festival presents 2 nights of special film screenings in Worcester, Tuesday, October 7, and Thursday, October 9. Co-presented with Central Massachusetts Coalition for Middle East Peace and the International Student Center at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Enraged by Eyal Eithcowich Tuesday, October 7, 7:00pm Clark University, Jefferson Academic Center Rm. 218 , Worcester, MA (documentary feature, 2006, 58 min, Israel) Exposes a face of the Israeli left that is rarely seen or talked about with an appearance by Anarchist against the Wall Activist Matan Cohen. A group of Jewish-Israeli activists break one of the country's most sacred taboos: they cross into the occupied territories to join the non-violent Palestinian resistance to the occupation. The heroes of "Enraged" pay a heavy price for their actions. At home in Israel they are ostracized by their own society; in Palestine, they endure a similar fate to that of the Palestinians--they are beaten, sprayed with tear-gas, and shot at with rubber-coated bullets. Israeli activist Matan Cohen, featured in the documentary Enraged, will attend the screening of the film at Clark University (Jefferson Academic Center/Rm218), Tuesday, October 7th at 7:00 pm. A member of Anarchists Against the Wall, Matan was shot in the eye by Israeli border police in January 2006 while participating in a protest in the West Bank. He will speak about nonviolent opposition to the Israeli occupation after the showing of the film. The Zoo by Hayden Campbell, and Stranger in my Home by Sahera Dirbas Thursday, October 9, 7:00pm Worcester Polytechnic Institute Higgins Lab/Room 116, 100 Institute Road, Worcester, MA The Zoo (Documentary Feature , 2005, 50 min, Palestine/New Zealand) : A day in the life of Palestine's one and only zookeeper, Dr. Sami Khader. Like the zoo itself, Qalqiliya, the city where Khader lives and works, is completely fenced off from the rest of the world by Israel's "separation" barrier. Campbell accompanies the voluble and entertaining Dr. Sami on a mission to rescue two baboons. Stranger in my Home (Documentary short, 2007, 37min, Palestine): Stories of eight Palestinian Jerusalemite families who have been turned into refugees.

Ismaël Ferroukhi, France, 2004 at Eager Auditorum, Sullivan Bldg, Worcester State “It's a tribute to my parents and the 97 percent of Muslims that we never hear about in the Western world," says director Ferroukhi about this film which depicts the road trip of French-Morroccan Reda and his devout Muslim father to Mecca. The father convinces his reluctant teenage son to drive them from their home in France to Saudia Arabia on his once-in-a-lifetime religious pilgrimage, the hajj. The film has won awards and been featured in film festivals from Milwaukee to Venice to Marrakesh and Jerusalem.

Sufyan and Abdallah Omeish, USA, 2006 at Eager Auditorum, Sullivan Bldg, Worcester State A powerful documentary film on the current and historical root causes of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “Occupation 101” presents an analysis of the facts and underreported details surrounding this high-stakes conflict. Winner of multiple best film awards, the film features voices rarely heard in the American mainstream press, including Middle East historians, Israeli peace activists, journalists, and humanitarian workers.

Jafar Panahi, Iran, 2006 at Ghosh Center, Worcester State College Inspired by the day when his own daughter was refused entry to a soccer stadium in Iran, Jafar Panahi’s “Offside” follows a day in the life of a group of Iranian girls attempting to watch their team's World Cup qualifying match against Bahrain at the stadium in Tehran. A disparate group of girls, united only by their desire to see their beloved team play, disguise themselves, risking arrest to try to get into the game. Winner of the Silver Bear Award, Berlin International Film Festival, 2006.

THURSDAY, MARCH 27th @ 7 pm DANA COMMONS, 2nd floor CLARK UNIVERSITY YAKOANA film screening & conversation Yakoana is the authorized documentary of the First World Conference of Indigenous Peoples, held in the jungles of Brazil the week prior to the United Nations Earth Summit in 1992. Numerous tribal leaders from around the world share their understanding of sustainability based on their earth-based spirituality. Rachael Shea (Goddard Library) and Octavia Taylor (Marsh Insitute) will lead a fire-side conversation about the film and the issues it raises. __________________________________________________ This event is part of the Difficult Dialogues symposium on Climate Change. To learn more about our program and to see a full listing of our public events this semester please visit our website: www.clarku.edu/difficultdialogues

At Ghosh Center for Science & Technology, Worcester State College. Donations requested. "An opus in three parts, Iraq In Fragments offers a series of intimate, passionately-felt portraits: A fatherless 11-year-old is apprenticed to the domineering owner of a Baghdad garage; Sadr followers in two Shiite cities rally for regional elections while enforcing Islamic law at the point of a gun; a family of Kurdish farmers welcomes the US presence, which has allowed them a measure of freedom previously denied." "American director James Longley spent more than two years filming in Iraq to create this stunningly photographed, poetically rendered documentary of the war-torn country as seen through the eyes of Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds. Winner of Best Director, Best Cinematography and Best Editing awards in the 2006 Sundance Film Festival documentary competition, the film was also awarded the Grand Jury Prize at the 2006 Full Frame Documentary Film Festival."

At Ghosh Center for Science & Technology, Worcester State College Bahman Ghobadi, Iran, 2002 Marooned in Iraq: The war with Iran is over and Saddam’s air force is now engaged in exterminating the Kurdish population. In the midst of chaos, Mirza, an aging well-known Iranian Kurdish singer starts searching for his ex-wife Hanareh. The film is the story of a nation of wanderers so used to war and its ravages that they take it as a game and console themselves by celebrating life with their music. Winner of multiple international film awards at Cannes, in Chicago, Italy, Brazil and Argentina. All are welcome! Suggested Donation $5. For more information call 508-753-3588 or 781-864-8879.

At Eager Auditorium, Sullivan Academic Building, Worcester State College Directed by Hany Abu-Assad, Palestine, 2002 Rana's Wedding: Shooting on location in East Jerusalem, Ramallah and at checkpoints in-between, Palestinian director Hany Abu-Assad (Paradise Now) sees the Palestinian-Israeli conflict through the eyes of a young woman who, with only ten hours to marry, must negotiate her way around roadblocks, soldiers, stone-throwers, overworked officials...and into the heart of an elusive lover. Official Selection, 2002 Cannes Film Festival. All are welcome! Suggested Donation $5. For more information call 508-753-3588 or 781-864-8879.

At Cinema 320, Jefferson Building, Clark University Directed by Ronit Avni and Julia Bacha, 2006 Encounter Point: A feature documentary by a Palestinian, Israeli, North and South American team from Just Vision telling a true story about the everyday leaders who refuse to sit back as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict escalates. The film received accolades at film festivals from San Francisco to Dubai, to Vancouver and Jerusalem. All are welcome! Suggested Donation $5. For more information call 508-753-3588 or 781-864-8879.

At Razzo Hall, Traina Center for Arts, Clark University, 92 Downing Street. Grand Théatre: A Tale of Beirut Omar Naïm, 1999, Lebanon "Grand Théatre: A Tale of Beirut," a short documentary viewing the Lebanese Civil War, its roots and aftermath, through the eyes of an old theater. Dunia: Kiss Me Not On the Eyes Jocelyne Saab, 2005, Egypt Set in Cairo, "Dunia" is the coming of age story of a student of poetry and belly dancing, whose artistic expression is inhibited because she cannot experience desire. The film was initially banned in Egypt, though it later premiered in the Cairo International Film Festival. Some accused director Saab of defaming Egypt’s image abroad by shooting scenes in Cairo’s slums. Others supported the film’s stance against female circumcision and its call for intellectual freedom. All are welcome! Suggested Donation $5. For more information call 508-753-3588 or 781-864-8879.