Middle Eastern Cinema
Filmatique presents Middle Eastern Cinema, a collection of films from Israel and Palestine that seek to represent a diversity of perspectives and cinematic representations of the region.
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5 Broken Cameras
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G. Davidi and E. Burnat • 2011 • Palestine-Israel • A portrait of life in the occupied West Bank.
A personal portrait of life in the occupied West Bank––a Palestinian farmer turned filmmaker documents life in his West Bank village as Israeli settlements grow closer and closer.
A ...
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Ajami
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Yaron Shani & Scandar Copti • Israel • 2009
Ajami is a bustling multi-ethnic neighborhood in Yaffa, a place where Palestinian immigrants, Israeli Arabs, Christians and Jews live alongside each other. They share the same streets, the same sorrows. Omar has been targeted in reveng...
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Bethlehem
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Yuval Adler • Israel • 2013 • A complexly human portrait of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Sanfur is seventeen years old, the younger brother of Ibrahim, a prominent Palestinian militia leader. Living with his domineering father and taciturn mother, it is clear that Sanfur's l...
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Carmel
Amos Gitai • Israel • 2009 • A personal meditation on having one’s home in a perpetual state of war.
Born in Haifa, a filmmaker takes stock of his home. The Jewish-Roman wars raged in 66 AD—years ago, a man’s helicopter was shot down by a Syrian rocket in the Yom Kippur War. Today, his son has...
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In the Image
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Emmy Scharlatt & Judith Montell • Israel & Palestine • 2014 • Palestinians & Israelis seek justice.
Ayat, Salam, and Nariman have chosen to participate in The Camera Project, an initiative launched by the Jerusalem-based human rights organization B’Tselem. A unique collaboration ...
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Jellyfish
Shira Geffen & Etgar Keret • Israel-France • 2006 • A magical-realist portrait of Tel Aviv today.
It feels like Batya’s life is falling apart. Things aren’t going well with her boyfriend, and she has a dead-end job as a catering waitress that brings her no satisfaction. Working a wedding recep...
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Salt of This Sea
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Annemarie Jacir • Palestine • 2008 • A portrait of a woman's determination to reclaim her birthright.
Sixty years after her grandparents' exile from Jaffa, Soraya feels something is not right. Departing Brooklyn for a homeland she has never known, she is greeted instead with susp...
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The Idol
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Hany Abu-Assad • Palestine • 2016 • A teen smuggles himself across borders to audition for Arab Idol
Gaza, 2005. Despite the despair of their suroundings, ten-year-old Mohammed and his sister, Nour, spend their days immersed in childhood games and music, playing in a band with tw...
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The Kindergarten Teacher
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Nadav Lapid • Israel • 2014 Nira meets a young boy and resorts to measures to cultivate his talent.
Middle-aged Nira works in an elementary school. She has a decent relationship with her husband, a low-level bureaucrat, and sees her children from time to time. While her life may...
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Tikkun
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Avishai Sivan • Israel • 2015 • A religious scholar experiences a strange awakening.
A religious scholar from Jerusalem, Haim-Aaron’s talent and devotion are envied by all. In the midst of a fast, he collapses and loses consciousness. Paramedics announce his death, but his fathe...
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Synonyms
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Nadav Lapid • France, Israel, Germany • 2019 • The challenges of putting down roots in a new place
Yoav is a disaffected young Israeli who has fled Tel Aviv to start a new life. Now in Paris, Yoav sees becoming French as his only hope for salvation. Step one is to replace his l...
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When I Saw You
Annemarie Jacir • 2012 • Palestine-Jordan
Annemarie Jacir’s second film observes the effects of the Six Day War on a young boy who has been displaced to a Jordanian refugee camp.
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Zero Motivation
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Talya Lavie • Israel • 2014 • A humorous portrait about female camaraderie in the Israeli army.
Zohar and Daffi are best friends, stationed at a remote outpost while they complete their mandatory military service. They deflect from the tedium of their days by playing video games,...