Day 4-Synopsis

The Presence of Absence in the Ruins of Kafr Bir'im

Through his narrative and poetry, Ibrahim Issa recounts his experiences and youth in the Palestinian village of Kafr Bir’im and the hardships of a life in exile.

Shot on location in the ruins and cemetery of Kafr Bir’im, a Palestinian village located in the Northern Galilee, the film introduces the viewer to Mr. Ibrahim Essa, an elderly poet who survived the ethnic cleansing of his village in 1948. Through his narrative and poetry, Ibrahim Issa recounts his experiences as a youth in the village, the hardships of a life in exile and the intense emotional, physical and historical connections to the land that he shares with the 5,000,000 Palestinians who currently live in the Palestinian Diaspora.
Language Arabic
Director John Halaka

This Palestinian Life

Documents the aspects of perseverance or steadfastness of the Palestinian nonviolent struggle against Israeli occupation and the deliberate, ongoing, illegal annexation of Palestinian land.

THIS PALESTINIAN LIFE is a film about people who persevere despite the odds stacked against them. The film documents specifically the aspects of perseverance or steadfastness of the Palestinian nonviolent struggle against Israeli occupation and the deliberate, ongoing, illegal annexation of Palestinian land. An Arabic term used for everyday acts of nonviolent resistance is sumoud – steadfastness, perseverance. In the film, Egyptian activist and filmmaker, Philip Rizk, tells the stories of Palestinian villagers who attempt to remain steadfast, to persevere, in the face of settler violence, the injustice and duplicity of the Israeli government.
Language English and Arabic
Director Philip Rizk

Rightful yet Right less

Explores the Sudanese refugees’ failed expectations, hopelessness, and despair in Cairo.

Over one million Sudanese who escaped their war-torn country now live in Cairo. Under international human rights agreements, these refugees have the right to education, employment, health care, welfare and protection. But, in Egypt, they are right-less. This documentary explores the refugees' failed expectations, hopelessness, and despair.
Language English & Arabic
Director Juliana Tarfur

Monkey Dance

Three Cambodian-American teenagers come of age in a world shadowed by their parents' nightmares of the Khmer Rouge.

Three Cambodian-American teenagers come of age in a world shadowed by their parents' nightmares of the Khmer Rouge. Traditional Cambodian dance links them to their parents’culture, but fast cars, hip consumerism, and new romance pull harder. Gradually coming to appreciate their parents’ sacrifices, the three teens find a balance between their parents’ dreams and their own.
Language English and Khmer
Director Julie Mallozzi