General view of Beirut
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Haitham Shamas, director of the “Beirut Dignity – Human Rights Film Festival,” which launched its seventh edition in Beirut on Thursday and continues until next Sunday, said that the festival’s slogan, “Stand Together,” “came from the reality of the situation we are living in, which is witnessing collapses at various levels.” .
Shams added to Erem News: “It is also a call to adhere to human rights principles, to confront the surreal situation we are witnessing in Lebanon and the region, and to advocate for marginalized groups.”
He stressed, “The application of these principles through art and cinema requires accumulation, continuity, time, and motivating tools.”
The festival raises the slogan “Stand together”
The festival, which is organized at the “Sunflower Theater” in the capital, by the “961 Arts Laboratory” association, in cooperation with the United Nations Information Center in Beirut, and in partnership with the International Labor Organization and the Czech Embassy, presents 13 films, both fiction and documentary, from all countries of the world.
All of these films revolve around human rights principles, such as the rights of refugees, the rights of women and workers, diversity and inclusion of marginalized groups and people with disabilities. The screening of the films, which will be available for free, will be followed by discussions and debates in the presence of a number of directors.
“Anxiety in Beirut”
Among the screenings that the Karama Festival will present is the documentary film “Anxiety in Beirut,” which won the best documentary at the Shanghai Film Festival. It is the first film by Lebanese director Zakaria Jaber, in which he tried to answer the question, “Why are we anxious in Beirut?”
Regarding the participation of his film in the festival, Jaber told “Erm News”: “It means a lot to me, and it is important for me that the film be classified as a human rights film,” adding, “The idea of human rights can be an outdated idea, or it can be a profound idea.” Very much, and this festival provides the appropriate depth for us to talk about human rights.”
Jaber explained, “The Karama Festival allowed the film (Anxiety in Beirut) to reach the Lebanese audience, given the difficulty of showing it commercially due to the sensitivity of the film and its topics.”
The film “I Am a Tree” is included in the festival
“I am a tree”
“I Am a Tree” is a short film by Rasha Faraj that the festival chose to be among its screenings.
Faraj told “Erm News”: “This selection represents an achievement for me, given the quality of films that will be shown at the festival, and also because the film will be shown in Beirut, the city he is talking about.”
She added: “The film is a summary of my relationship with Beirut, my relationship with it, and the bonds I felt after leaving it.”
Faraj considered that this departure was a sin, and that it took her years to integrate and heal from the traumas she experienced abroad, which prompted her to call herself “The Tree.”
It is noteworthy that the “Beirut Dignity” Festival has been presenting films with content affecting human rights, and under slogans related to them, since its inception in 2016. Its first slogan was “The Others,” which focused on raising awareness about the rights of refugees and minorities in the Arab world.
In the years that followed, he also focused on the conflict of identities and freedom of expression, achieving gender equality, youth representation in political life, and the importance of reconciliation in order to progress towards a peaceful and just society.
2023-10-06 19:54:16
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