For the second edition of Arab Cinema Week, independent theater Cinema Akil is opening its doors to all Dubai-based cinephiles. From Oct. 6-15, Alserkal Avenue will host the cinematic week in collaboration with the UK’s Safar Film Festival. Under the theme of Human Bonds, Cinema Akil will provide insights into an Arab upbringing while carving out a special place for independent Arab cinema with a full range of screenings hailing from all over the region.
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“What ties an individual to a particular society? How do norms, customs and traditions affect one’s upbringing, identity and relationships? And does growing up in a particular environment necessarily mean belonging to it?,” states the cinema’s website, revealing that the selected movies will either reflect, answer, or simply observe the questions posed above.
Notions surrounding relationships are at the core of this edition. There is no denying that humans fall in love naturally. Their unforgiving surroundings, however, make finding a happy ending nearly impossible. The Tunisian film, Under the Fig Trees explores just that through teenagers who indulge their romantic desires.
With an emphasis on social encounters, veteran filmmaker Ahmad Abdalla’s 19B, set in an old villa amidst Cairo, addresses the ongoing power struggles in Egypt today.
In Fields of Words: Conversation with Samar Yazbek, Lebanese filmmaker and artist Rania Stephan alongside the renowned Syrian writer Yazbek, who now lives in exile, explores the power of literature and Yazbek’s revolutionary role in a war-torn Syria.
Additionally, Beirut holds a special place in this year’s selection. It is a city that has endured constant suffering and change, a theme which is revisited by three filmmakers, in three very distinct timeframes, during Arab Cinema Week. The titles include, The Insomnia of A Serial Dreamer, Beirut the Encounter, and Dirty, Difficult, Dangerous which explores a love story in today’s Beirut between a Syrian refugee and an Ethiopian domestic worker.
Heroic Bodies, the Sudanese film directed by Sara Suliman, tells the story of the Sudanese women’s movement through body politics. During the British colonial period and post-independence eras, the filmmaker explores the way in which the human body became a common symbol for both repression and resistance to the state, patriarchy, and colonialism. Through interviews with prominent activists, artists, and academics, as well as rare archive footage, this documentary explores the creative practices that contributed to Sudanese women’s emancipation.
Meanwhile, Ishtar Yasin Gutiérrez traces her father’s roots in Iraq 20 years after the invasion of the country in her essay film My Lost Country.
Following 75 years since Al Nakba shattered and changed the lives of Palestinians forever: filmmaker Firas Khoury explores in his feature debut Alam love under occupation.
After the recent natural disaster that struck Morocco, in paying tribute to the country’s cinematic excellence, Cinema Akil will be screening Life Suits Me Well, a film that follows the lives of a Moroccan family that has to learn to recompose itself after the sudden sickness of the patriarch.
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Arab Cinema Week is an exploration of Arab cinema as well as a celebration of it. The event offers an opportunity for filmgoers to explore human bonds through the lens of the nuanced Arab region. If you’re in Dubai, be sure to check out the bonding experience for yourself.
For more information on how to purchase tickets, and attend Arab Cinema week, visit Cinema Akil’s website for more information.
