Synopsis

When their mother disappears, a young boy and his three siblings must figure out how to get by on their own in this at once heartfelt and heartbreaking drama. Shown on 35mm with Tribute

Synopsis

Basel Adra, a young Palestinian activist from a small town on the West Bank, has been fighting the forceful expulsion of his community by Israeli authorities since he was a child. For decades, he has looked on as houses have been demolished and his family has been harassed, because, as he says, “we have no other land.” When he meets Yuval, an idealistic Israeli journalist who wants to document the ongoing brutality, an unlikely alliance develops between the two.

Compelling and inspiring, the film closely chronicles the devastating and heartbreaking day-to-day assaults against the Palestinian people, as well as their attempts to rebuild. It also explores the complicated relationship between Adra and Yuval, who — despite their differences in privilege and power — share an unwavering faith in the recorded image to make a difference. Extraordinarily empathic and moving, No Other Land is a stunning and all-too-relevant testament to resistance and resilience.

Synopsis

Born weeks after Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution, filmmaker Farahnaz Sharifi soon realized she was living on two different planets: the public one which was constrained by political and religious strictures, and the private one where she could fully be herself.

Discovering the power of images at an early age when she bought her first camera, Sharifi began recording her family life while also obsessively collecting decaying Super 8 reels left behind by anonymous people. In contrasting these two worlds — scenes of violent repression on the streets versus home movies showing moments of joy, dancing, and domestic freedom — Sharifi offers an intimate and timely reflection on how recorded images can be a powerful corrective to the erasure of histories and female identity. Winner of top prizes at nearly a dozen international film festivals, My Stolen Planet allows Sharifi’s own story, along with images of voiceless women from the past and present, to form a vivid and collective act of resistance.

Synopsis

Anchored by a pair of winning lead performances, this unexpected romance tenderly examines human connection. Mahin, 70, lives alone in Tehran after her husband dies and her daughter moves to Europe. She spends her days in solitary routine, cooking and tending to her backyard garden. Out to tea one afternoon, she catches the eye of an eligible senior bachelor. Inspired to break from her everyday drudgery, she seizes the opportunity to revitalize her love life. What follows is an unpredictable, eventful chronicle of a single unforgettable evening. Bursting with life, this unconventional, at times surreal delight weaves together social critique and light comedy as it reflects on what it means to live as a woman under restrictive social and political circumstances.

Synopsis

Melrick, an unruly 13-year-old boy living in Stains, France, spends his summers at his grandmother’s house in French Guiana. He loves drumming — in no small part because his uncle Lucas, who tragically died 11 years prior, was also a drummer. As Melrick’s awareness of his family’s devastating past grows, he searches for ways to pay tribute to his history, culture, and heritage. Through a blend of intimate invented scenarios and carefully observed documentary footage, director Maxime Jean-Baptiste deftly crafts a heart-wrenching, deeply human portrait of a family and of a community committed to the anti-colonial struggle trying to reconcile their grief with an impulse for revenge. Listen to the Voices is urgent, beautiful, and filled with humanity.