Children of Shatila
1998 · 50 min · ★ 7.5 · Documentary, History
Many people first became aware of the Shatila refugee camp in Lebanon after the shocking and horrific Sabra-Shatila massacre that took place there in 1982. Located in Beirut's "belt of misery," the camp is home to 15,000 Palestinians and Lebanese who share a common experience of displacement, unemployment and poverty. Fifty years after the exile of their grandparents from Palestine, the children of Shatila attempt to come to terms with the reality of being refugees in a camp that has survived massacre, siege and starvation. Director Mai Masri focuses on two Palestinian children in the camp: Farah, age 11 and Issa, age 12. When these children are given video cameras, the story of the camp evolves from their personal narratives as they articulate the feelings and hopes of their generation.
Directed by Mai Masri · Written by Mai Masri
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Children of Fire · 1991Children of Fire
★ 10.01991
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When filmmaker Mai Masri returned to her hometown of Nablus after a fourteen year absence, she discovered a new generation of Palestinian fighters: the children of the Intifada. Winner of the Award of Public at the Freminin Pluriel Festival, Children of Fire captures their courageous story on film and paints a daring portrait of the Palestinian uprising.
Frontiers of Dreams and Fears · 2001Frontiers of Dreams and Fears
★ 7.32001
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This heartfelt documentary from award-winning filmmaker Mai Masri explores the enduring friendship that evolves between two Palestinian girls—Mona, who was born and raised in the economically marginalized Shatila refugee camp in Beirut, and Manar, who lives in the Dheisha refugee camp under Israeli control. The two girls begin their friendship as penpals, sharing the similarities and differences of life in the two refugee camps. Mona and Manar are finally able to meet face-to-face at the Lebanese-Israeli border during Israel's withdrawal from South Lebanon. But when the second intifada suddenly erupts around them shortly thereafter, both girls must face heart-breaking changes in their lives.
Wild Flowers: Women of South Lebanon · 1987Wild Flowers: Women of South Lebanon
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In this award-winning documentary, directors Masri and Chamoun focus on the women who played a crucial role in fighting the Israeli invasion of southern Lebanon. Preserving their stories on camera, Wild Flowers: Women of South Lebanon is a poignant documentary about courage, resistance, and hope.
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★ 6.22015
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Iman, a young newly wed Palestinian bride, is arrested and incarcerated in a top-security Israeli prison where she gives birth to a baby boy. As she struggles to survive and raise her child behind bars, she is torn between her instinct as a mother and the difficult decisions she must make, finding through her relationship with the other prisoners - both Palestinian and Israeli – the time and space to reflect, develop and mature as a young woman.
Beirut Diaries: Truth, Lies and Videos · 2006Beirut Diaries: Truth, Lies and Videos
★ 6.02006
MovieDocumentary
By focusing on the experiences of 25-year-old Nadine Zaidan, who was one of the thousands of activists who gathered in Beirut’s Martyrs’ Square in the chaotic days immediately following the assassination of Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri in February of 2005, Beirut Diaries explores critical transformations and crucial questions facing contemporary Lebanon. With this insightful video diary, director Mai Masri chronicles the political ferment embodied in the March 11th Movement, also known as The Cedar Revolution, as people of all factions, ages and religious affiliations passionately debate such issues as Syria’s influence in Lebanese politics, the establishment of an international commission to investigate Hariri’s assassination and the organization of free parliamentary elections.
Women Beyond Borders · 2003Women Beyond Borders
2003
MovieDocumentary
Acclaimed director Jean Chamoun looks at the lives and works of some of the women who have joined in the fight for their Palestinian homeland. We learn of young resistance fighter Kifah Afifi’s experience as a survivor of the 1982 Shatila massacre in Lebanon when she was just twelve years old. She tells about fighting the Israeli occupation of South Lebanon in the 1990s and of her imprisonment in the Khiam detention facility, which was run by Israel’s auxiliary militia, the South Lebanon Army.
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2007
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1986
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War Generation - Beirut explores the lives, dreams and fears of three generations of young people living in the heart of the civil war in Lebanon. This seminal work from Jean Chamoun and Mai Masri remains one of the most powerful anti-war documents of the period.
Hanan Ashrawi: A Woman of Her Time · 1995Hanan Ashrawi: A Woman of Her Time
1995
MovieDocumentary
In the aftermath of the peace accord signed by Israel and the PLO in September of 1995, Palestinian spokeswoman Hanan Ashrawi emerged as a formidable negotiator and a persuasive voice on the international stage. But beyond the polished rhetoric and the public poise, what drives this mother of two whose high profile and personal integrity have made her enemies as well as friends? Palestinian filmmaker Mai Masri profiles Ashrawi in this intimate portrait, exploring how she juggles her responsibilities as political activist, writer, and mother—all against the backdrop of challenges facing the Palestinians in their struggle to build a viable state.
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2021
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It’s October 2019, and four progressive women are documenting the uprising in Beirut. They are journalist Hanine, Iraqi camerawoman Lujain, and Noel and Michelle, two artist sisters whose often-ironic songs have made them a voice for their generation. The prevailing mood is one of hope and change. But a few months later, Covid-19 has locked down the city, and all optimism seems to have evaporated.
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