The Bristol Palestine Film Festival is back in 2023 with a diverse lineup of the very best in contemporary Palestinian cinema, arts and culture. This year’s festival takes place 2-10 December at four independent venues across the city, with a lineup of seven feature-length films and two shorts evenings, showcasing the rich variety of stories from Palestine and the region. And for the first time we are hosting an evening of live spoken word with popular local poetry night Raise the Bar.
We acknowledge the difficult circumstances of this year’s events in Israel and Palestine, and we remain committed to our founding aim of showcasing Palestinian cinema and culture. We hope that this year’s festival will provide a space for commemoration, reflection and discussion, and we believe in giving a platform for Palestinian stories, culture and traditions. We are proud to be hosting four Directors’ Q&A sessions with award-winning film directors in our programme, and two expert panel discussions.
The festival opens on 2nd December with the hit feature film Farha and an evening of live poetry, spoken word and discussion. Over the next eight days we’re showing a diverse programme of award-winning films at Watershed, The Cube, Arnolfini and the Palestine Museum and Cultural Centre, including two country selections for Best International Film at the Oscars. Expect an eye-opening mix of contemporary perspectives from the region with interwoven themes of loss and memory, as we commemorate the 75th anniversary of the 1948 nakba, when Palestinian land was occupied and dispossessed.
This year's programme includes the following highlights:
Farha + Director Q&A + panel discussion
Based on real events, Jordanian director Darin J. Sallam tells the coming-of-age story of 14-year old Farha, whose childhood, and her dreams of an education, are shattered following the brutal military invasion of her country. Farha finds herself trapped in her family house, hiding from the Israeli military and watching the unfolding catastrophe. Farha is the film that Israeli government officials tried to cancel, and tells the story they don’t want to be told.
Q&A with Director Darin J. Sallam
Darin J. Sallam is a Jordanian director of Palestinian descent with five award-winning short films to her name. Darin’s first feature film Farha has enjoyed a prestigious outing and after its premiere at Toronto International Film Festival, has been selected as Jordan’s submission to the International Feature Film category in the 95th Academy Awards (Oscars). While being well received at international film festivals, Farha and its distributor Netflix have come under attack from the Israeli government.
Panel discussion with Ghada Karmi, Hind Shoufani and Lowkey
Following the screening there will be a panel discussion on the way that the 1948 dispossession of Palestine and ongoing nakba have been represented in cinema and the wider arts. The guest speakers include Ghada Karmi, physician, academic and award-winning writer, who survived the 1948 nakba, when she was expelled from her family home in Jerusalem by Zionist militias. Hind Shoufani is a Palestinian-American filmmaker, writer and poet. Her latest short film Heavy Metal is screening in the 2023 festival in our second evening of Palestinian short films. Last but not least, Lowkey is joining our panel. Renowned rapper, activist and political commentator, Lowkey has combined commercial success with political integrity, remaining outspoken in his opposition to the occupation of Palestine, and in gaining justice for the victims of the Grenfell Tower tragedy.
In the Shadow of Beirut + Director Q&A
From the makers of Gaza (2019), this film is a searing and intimate portrait of Sabra and Shatila refugee camps in Beirut, home to some of the poorest and most downtrodden people in the city. As well as three generations of Palestinian refugees, there are also new arrivals from the war in Syria and undocumented Lebanese trying to get by. The filmmakers document the personal lives of residents of these marginalised slums and refugee camps of Beirut through their struggles of hard work and low pay, drug addiction, lack of identity papers and the memories of war, all while their city and country fall apart around them.
Q&A with Director Garry Keane
Garry Keane is an award-winning director/producer based in Ireland. He has been making high-end television documentaries for European and American broadcasters for over 20 years. In The Shadow of Beirut has been selected as Ireland’s entry for the Oscar Best International Feature Film category at the upcoming 96th annual Academy Awards.
Bye Bye Tiberias + Director Q&A
Three decades ago Palestinian actor Hiam Abbass (Paradise Now, Succession) left her native village Deir Hanna in Galilee to follow her acting dream in France. After finding success in independent cinema and Hollywood she returns to Tiberias with her film director daughter Lina to explore her memories and the women she left behind. Bye Bye Tiberias is Palestine’s official selection for Best International Feature at the 96th Academy Awards (Oscars).
Q&A with Director Lina Soualem
Lina Soualem is a French-Palestinian-Algerian filmmaker and actress, born and based in Paris. After studying History and Political Science at La Sorbonne University, Lina started working as a programmer for the International Human Rights Film Festival in Buenos Aires. Lina’s debut feature documentary Their Algeria premiered in Visions du Réel International Film Festival 2020. Their Algeria received dozens of prestigious awards. Bye Bye Tiberias, her second documentary film, premiered in Venice International Film Festival and Toronto International Film Festival in 2023.
For the full programme, visit www.bristolpff.org.uk.
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