1. Program
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  3. Film Series
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  5. 14th ALFILM – Arab Film Festival Berlin
December 0000

14th ALFILM – Arab Film Festival Berlin

The 14th edition of ALFILM – Arab Film Festival Berlin will presentover 40 feature fictions, documentaries and short films with high artistic value, as well as many other events in its three sections ALFILM Selection, ALFILM Spotlight and ALFILM Atelier.

Through ALFILM Selection, film productions from the last two years aim to highlight the diversity of the current Arab cinematic landscape. The guest of honour at this year’s edition is renowned Palestinian actor, Saleh Bakri who will be present for screenings of three of his latest films: The Blue Caftan by Myriam Touzani, Beirut Hold’em by Michel Kammoun and Alam by Firas Khoury. Bakri will also give a master class dedicated to his extensive career and involvement with Arab and Palestinian Cinema. ALFILM Selection will particularly focus on Palestinian cinema 75 years after the Nakba with screenings of the films Foragers by Jumana Manna, Mediterranean Fever by Maha Haj, and Alam by Firas Khoury, as well as panel discussions dedicated to this topic. Furthermore, many of the feature and short films of this program question traditional gender identities by presenting queer storylines and protagonists that aim to renegotiate heteronormative gender roles. Finally, the documentary section of the 14th ALFILM Selection features strong female voices fighting to bring their stories, and those of their communities, to the forefront.

ALFILM Spotlight, titled Ghosts, Griefs and Lost Dreams: Visions of the City in Arab Cinema will open with the Tunisian film Ashkal by Youssef Chebbi. This curated film program is dedicated to representations of Arab cities in classical and contemporary film productions. It underlines the role of cinema in accompanying and documenting urban transformations and bearing witness to urban modernity.

Further talks, panel discussions and master classes will take place within the framework of the ALFILM Atelier with a special focus on the Arab Diaspora through a panel discussion called The Arab City Re-envisioned: Exilic perspectives.

The River

The River

The River
Ghassan Salhab, Lebanon 2021, 102 Min., OV with English subs, DCP
Fragments from Heaven

Fragments from Heaven

Fragments from Heaven
Adnane Baraka, Morocco/ France 2022, 84 Min., OV with English subs, DCP
Damascus Dreams

Damascus Dreams

Damascus Dreams
Émilie Serri, Canada 2021, 84 Min., OV with English subs, DCP