The first Leeds Palestinian Film Festival was our first collection of films from and about Palestine and the Palestinian diaspora, ranging from documentaries to dramas to our favourite of the year, the Claymation “The Wanted 18”. We were pleased to have had Richard Burgon (MP for East Leeds and Shadow Cabinet Member) opening the festival on 15 November, given his long time interest and commitment to Palestine.
Sunday 15th November, 2015
The Wanted 18
Time: 7:30 pm
Venue: Leeds Town Hall
This winning mix of documentary and clay-animation offers an unexpectedly humorous account of a West Bank town’s experience of the first Intifada, a subject that doesn’t usually generate a lot of laughs in cinema.
→MoreTuesday 17th November, 2015
Amreeka
Time: 7:30 pm
Venue: Seven Arts Centre
This lighthearted film chronicles the adventures of Muna, a single mother who leaves the West Bank with Fadi, her teenage son, with dreams of an exciting future in the promised land of small town Illinois.
→MoreMonday 23rd November, 2015
Two Blue Lines
Time: 7:30 pm
Venue: Beckett Studio
Shot over a period of 32 years, this documentary examines the human and political situation of Palestinian people from the years prior to the creation of Israel to the present day.
→MoreSaturday 28th November, 2015
Balls, Barriers and Bulldozers + Q & A
Time: 7:30 pm
Venue: Carriageworks
The film follows two UK women’s football teams as they visit teams across the West Bank, even playing the Palestinian U19s team in the national stadium.
→MoreFriday 4th December, 2015
Divine Intervention
Time: 7:30 pm - 10:00 pm
Venue: HEART Centre
This surreal black comedy made by Palestinian director Elia Suleiman records a day in the life of a Palestinian living in Nazareth, whose girlfriend lives several checkpoints away in the West Bank city of Ramallah.
→MoreThursday 10th December, 2015
On the Side of the Road + Q & A
Time: 7:30 pm
Venue: Hamara Centre
This documentary by Israeli journalist Lia Tarachansky examines the collective Israeli denial about the expulsion and displacement of Palestinians in the wake of the 1948 war for independence.
→MoreTuesday 15th December, 2015
Open Bethlehem
Time: 7:30 pm
Venue: Hyde Park Picture House
Film director Leila Sansour returns to Bethlehem to make a film about her hometown, soon to be encircled by a wall.
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