The Search for Identity in a Fractured Society
Films by Israeli and Palestinian women directors
PARADISE LOST
Dir. Ebtisam Mara'ana
March 28, 2006
"Paradise Lost" is a thought-provoking film diary by Arab Israeli director Ebtisam Mara'ana. The film chronicles her attempt to recreate her village's lost history, including the story of her childhood hero Suuad, imprisoned as a PLO activist in the 1970's and banished from the community. Presenting the rarely heard voice of an Arab Israeli, this film offers valuable insight into the contradictions and complexities of modern womanhood and national identity in the Middle East. (2003, 56 mins, Arabic and Hebrew with English subtitles)
ANOTHER ROAD HOME
Dir. Danae Elon
March 30, 2006
"Another Road Home" is the deeply moving story of Israeli filmmaker Danae Elon’s quest to find Musa Obeidallah, the Palestinian man who helped raise her from the time she was a baby until she joined the Israeli army. Elon’s emotional and physical journey takes her from her current home in New York to an Arab-American neighborhood in New Jersey, and finally to the West Bank and Jerusalem. This evocative documentary by the daughter of Israeli author Amos Elon, reaches out with unsentimental acuity seasoned by deep affection, to all who believe in the power of family, trust and friendship. (2005, 89 mins, English)
"An emotional complexity that moves well beyond politics" —The New York Times
Presented by the UMass Amherst Office of Jewish Affairs in conjunction with the Pioneer Valley Jewish Film Festival and the Massachusetts Multicultural Film Festival.
Background
The Office of Jewish Affairs was created to foster better relations between Jewish, Muslim, Arab and other students. Programs such as this film series help build these bridges of friendship and understanding between racial, ethnic and religious communities. Fostering such good will and mutual respect is the core mission of the Office of Jewish Affairs, and an important component of the University’s stated commitment to diversity.
Press Release (PDF)
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