Weekend tip: Arab film festival & an ode to freedom

Head to Cinerama this weekend for the Arab Camera festival, a festival featuring 1001 beautiful films, as well as a few films on politically sensitive subjects.

The film Self Made, which will be screened at 8.15 p.m. on Saturday 14 November, follows two women: one Israeli, the other Palestinian. When a misunderstanding causes both women to end up on the other side of the border, each woman is exposed to a foreign culture. What is great about this film is that it doesn’t take sides, but rather depicts the human sides of the women and the cultures to which they belong.

High profile romance

A high profile romance is portrayed in The Amina Profile, in which a Syrian woman called Amina finds online love with a Canadian called Sandra. Amina keeps a blog called A Gay Girl in Damascus, which is her way of being open about her sexual orientation. Amina becomes a famous blogger, but disappears following the outbreak of the Arab Spring uprisings. A worldwide search for the blogger ensues.

Sunday afternoon will be devoted to censorship. A film directed by someone whose name will remain unknown will be screened. This person previously had another film censored because of the issues it raised. Afterwards, there will be a talk show hosted by Geert Maarse, who will ask himself and the audience how censorship affects people. During the show, brief clips from films which have been subjected to censorship will be shown. In addition, there will be a discussion on the impact of new media, inspired by the film The Amina Profile.