Short films made by Palestinian female filmmakers were screened on Friday evening in Algiers in tribute to Walla Saada, one of them, the director of “Khouyout harir” (Threads of Silk), who recently fell as a martyr in Gaza following the barbaric bombings by the Zionist occupying army.
Organized under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture and the Arts by the International Film Festival of Algiers in partnership with the Algerian Cinematography Center (CAC), this tribute evening to Palestinian cinema took place at the Algerian Cinematheque.
Short films, each about fifteen minutes long, produced by the “Shashet En’nissae” (Women’s Screen) cinema association, which promotes and finances films made by Palestinian female filmmakers, were screened under the generic slogan “I am Palestinian,” in the presence of the representative and member of this collective, Nada Khalifa.
Produced in 2019, “Khouyout harir” tells in 14 minutes the story of an elderly seamstress in love with her craft, which is part of an ancestral tradition, and who struggles to ensure its transmission and continuity, showcasing, at every moment on screen, the late martyr, Walla Saada, who portrayed her models designed in various styles adorned with a variety of embroideries.
Other recent short films, which depict the difficult, if not impossible, living conditions endured by the Palestinian people in Gaza in particular, were presented by Nada Khalifa.
For instance, “Sard” (Narration) by Zeina Ramadan is an audible epistolary exchange lasting over 8 minutes between two friends, Zeina and Riham. The latter recounts, visually to her friend, the adventures of her various attempts to leave Gaza, under siege for over 10 years imposed by the Zionist occupation.
“El Ghoul” (The Ogre), written and directed by Ala Desoki, accounts for in 16 minutes the confusion through time, in the various social interpretations to give to the ogre, allowing, in the meantime, the beast to grow and increase in ferocity, until the day people recognize it in their daily lives, in the abjection and barbarity of the Zionist.
Lasting 13 minutes, “Vine leaves” by Dina Amin tells the true story of her Syrian grandmother, who delves into her intense memories, convinced that her true home is in Jerusalem.
“I wish weren’t Palestinian” by Feda Naser portrays a feeling of resilience portrayed on screen by the director, who, in 16 minutes, recounts her passage from the isolation she imposed on herself at a point in her life due to several disappointments related to difficult living conditions, to her resilience each time in facing her torments, to finally loudly proclaim her pride in being Palestinian.
“Testimonies of Girls,” a documentary by the “Shashet En’nissae” cinema association, presented at the end of the screenings, gave voice to young Palestinian teenage girls who, each through a poignant and painful story, recounted their fears of undertaking anything and the atrocities and war crimes perpetrated by the Zionist colonial army, which many of their relatives and often entire families have been victims of.
The representative and member of the “Shashet En’nissae” cinema association, Nada Khalifa, first “thanked Algeria for the unwavering support it has always provided to Palestine,” to then emphasize “the crucial role of cinema in shedding light on the Palestinian reality, promoting its noble and just cause worldwide, and exposing the vile and abhorrent practices of the Zionist occupier.”
Translated from APS
