Brisbane's first Palestinian film festival

"Palestinian Days", Brisbane's inaugural Palestinian film festival, will be held over October 16-18 in the Schonell Theatre at the University of Queensland, St Lucia.

The festival, organised by the Queensland Palestine Association and Justice for Palestine (Brisbane), offers audiences a glimpse of Palestinian life since dispossession and the brave resistance of a people under siege.

The opening night of the festival will feature Ambassador Izzat Abdulhadi, head of the Palestinian delegation to Australia, live entertainment from Phil Monsour, and Middle Eastern food, before the screening of award-winning films Lemonade and Arna's Children.

Films screening on October 17 include: Letter from Sarah; Palestine Blues; Frontiers of Dreams and Fears; Mohammed Alatar's Jerusalem: The East Side Story; and Palestine, Summer 06, which combines film, video art, and individual expression to evoke a sense of the summer when Israel carried out military assaults in Gaza and Lebanon.

On October 18, screenings will include: Driving to Zigzigland, which chronicles a day in the life of a Palestinian cab driver in Los Angeles; Jenin Jenin; and Watani Habibi, My Beloved Homeland, a rich musical expose combining the landscapes of ancient Palestine, sounds of traditional Arabic instruments, and passionate voices of Palestinian cultural resistance.

The festival will close with a screening of The Iron Wall.
[For more details, visit www.justiceforpalestinebrisbane.org, or phone 0400 720 757.]

From GLW issue 812