The fifth session of the “Reef” festival – environmental and cinematic days – filled the atmosphere of the Lebanese summer with artistic and cultural performances that marry arts and culture with environmental concerns, organized by the Environment Council – Kobayat, and “Our Films” (formerly Beirut DC), and in cooperation with the “Kahraba” group. and the Lamy Conservatory.
The first round of the activities of the session, which took place in Qobayat al-Akkari, in the far north of Lebanon, concluded and took place between August 31 and September 4, while the activities of the second round of the festival will take place in Hermel between the 8th and 10th of this month.
The first round witnessed the wide participation of artistic, civil, environmental and popular figures from Akkar, Beit Jaafar, Hermel, and various Lebanese regions.
The session took on the title “Transformations” 5 years after the launch of the festival, and according to the organizers of the festival, the title refers to “the changes that occurred in the geological and climatic levels, water pollution, desertification resulting from fires, urban erosion, and animal migration, as factors that led to transformations.” diverse demographics and cultures.
The “turtle” was also adopted as a symbol of the current cycle, to urge rural communities to preserve the animal environment that exists in their surroundings, and the turtle symbolizes it, many of which have been subjected to harm, death and migration during the wide encroachments that their habitats were subjected to in various ways, primarily logging and massive fires. Which hit the environment in Qobayat and Anandq and the neighborhood.
The performances took place in the various sessions of the festival in the lobbies and halls of the “Silk Factory” in the center of the town of Kobayat, after it turned into a tourist attraction preserving its heritage character. Qobayat was one of the first towns and villages whose residents were interested in silkworm breeding since the 18th century, before the natural silk industry declined at the hands of Lebanese farmers under the pressure of modern industry competition.
The course’s activities witnessed many cinematic shows and films, including “Dunya and the Princess of Aleppo”, a 70-minute Canadian drama directed by: Maria Zarif and Andre Qadi, which tells the story of a 6-year-old girl’s migration with the help of the Princess of Aleppo towards a new world.
As well as the movie “Mother Earth” by the Lebanese director Ban Fakih, and it tells the story of a girl who is the youngest of her three sisters, who is suppressed by her conservative family for her participation in protests against the ruling authority.
Then the movie “Gaza Mon Amour”, directed by Tarzan and Arab Nasser, an 87-minute drama, in partnership with Palestine, Germany, Portugal, Qatar and France. It is a film about the struggle of the fisherman Issa in his attempt to possess the girl Siham, whom he admired, and events prevented him from obtaining it.
And also the movie “Lynn and the Spirits of the Forest” by German director Dieter Schumann, 94 minutes long. It is dedicated to young people and children. It tells the story of a 10-year-old girl’s journey in a forest for entertainment, when she falls among many wild beasts. In addition to other films, including, Love in Galilee, The Stolen Country of Mine Mountain.
The festival’s activities also witnessed the screening of Ali Shri’s film The Dam (84′), which is a political tale in the context of the Sudanese revolution.
In the cinematic framework, “Messages between Women” and animation films were also screened, including short films produced by women from Akkar and Hermel after their participation in the One Minute film workshop, organized by Egyptian director Amal Ramses before the festival, in addition to animated films produced by young people in Hermel. Their ages range from 13 to 18 years old, under the supervision of Fadi Syriani, founder of the Youth Animation Platform.
Intermediate Film Competition
This competition aimed to transfer the “Reef” festival to the international level. Films from 32 different countries were presented to the festival, whose topics revolved around the idea of ”Transformations”, all of which are documentaries, including “Confessions of a Runner” by the Lebanese Bashar Khattar, And the Russian “Haulout” 25 minutes, the Belgian “The Returned”, the Belgian “The Illusion of Abundance” and the Colombian “Sonic Forest”, which won the award, and it is directed by Josh Thomas and Simon Hernandez.
The importance of the film lies in the view of the “Youth Ambassadors Committee” that judged the competition, as it sheds light on the role of the indigenous people in preserving mother nature, and the connection of music created by man with nature.
Short Film Competition
120 short films by young directors were submitted to the competition, 11 of which were selected and reached the final stage of the competition, namely: “The Struggle for Survival” directed by: Antoine Entebbe, “The Migrant Bird” directed by: Moran Matar, “Treno” directed by: Najib Katiri, “Drowning” directed by: Amir Al-Shennawy, “Za’tara” directed by: Adeeb Farhat, “How My Grandmother Turned into a Chair” directed by: Nicolas Fattouh, “Tomorrow Comes Love” directed by: Rakan Mayassi, “The Claw Machine” directed by: George Salama, “Hon is close.” Directed by: Jihad Saadeh, “Memory of the Land” directed by: Samira Badran, “He Looked at Me” directed by: Evelyn Hallis.
The competition jury consisted of director Hadi Zakak, actress Nada Bu Farhat, and Mahmoud Al Gurg, an expert in animation and post-production operations.
The first prize for the competition was won by the movie “Claw Machine” directed by George Salama, and the second prize for the movie “Not Far from Here” by Jihad Saadeh, with the jury noting the wonderful acting of the film’s actors: Rabih Al-Ahmar and Leah Jreij.
The Special Mention Award went to “How My Grandmother Turned into a Chair” directed by Nicolas Fattouh.
The performances witnessed discussions on film topics and techniques, and the dialogues were moderated by Lara Abu Seifan, Rima Kadisi, and Elie Kamal, who are workers in the artistic and cinematic field.
The festival organizers also announced the continuation of the short film competition under the title “Transformations via the Internet” with the general public until the 30th of this month, through the platform “Our moviesWith the Audience Award, viewers can follow 9 films via the platform.
