CINEMA OF RESISTANCE (Autumn 2025) Curated by Vivek Jain

Resistance is a charged word that brings a handful of questions along with it. Resistance, Why? For what? Against who? Of What Kind? To begin, there is resistance to preserving the freedom of expression. Resistance - to hold the ground for humanity. To resist moral apathy, in the place of learning, a place that claims to contribute to the development of public good and empathetic beings. But that is just the tip of the iceberg. This program brings a multi-layered curation of cinema that portrays different shades of resistance by utilising different storytelling tools. From fighting back to simply existing; from building community to singular struggle, from boiling anger to contagious laughter - a stirring mix of emotions all tied together with a resilient thread of solidarity with the people who are oppressed and marginalised, and whose narratives get lost in the mainstream.

8.10 at 18:00 [SuperNova - BFM]
The Encampments (2025) by Michael T Workman and Kei Pritsker 

The Encampments offers an urgent, intimate portrait of America’s student movement, ignited at Columbia University as students protested their universities’ ties to the war on Gaza. Their actions sparked a nationwide uprising, with encampments spreading across hundreds of campuses. Featuring detained activist Mahmoud Khalil, alongside professors, whistleblowers, and organizers, the film captures the deeper stakes of a historic moment that continues to reverberate across the globe. (Text Source: Watermelon Pictures)

Followed by a discussion with Aro Velmet on freedom of expression in the context of protests and on university campuses.

23.10 at 18:00 [SuperNova - BFM]
From Ground Zero (2024)

From Ground Zero, is a collection of revealing stories from 22 Palestinian filmmakers living through war, who capture their lives in Gaza amidst war. Using a blend of animation, documentary, and fiction, they create a powerful testament to the steadfastness of the human spirit. This film serves as a remarkable reflection of how art can thrive even in the darkest times, showcasing the enduring spirit and creativity that emerge amid ongoing devastation. (Text Source: Official Film Website)

2.11 at 15:00 [VABAMU]
A State of Passion (2024) by Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi 

A State of Passion is a feature-length documentary capturing the harrowing experiences of British-Palestinian reconstructive surgeon Dr. Ghassan Abu Sittah during the brutal realities of genocide in Gaza. The film serves as an intimate portrait of resilience, sacrifice, and unwavering commitment amidst one of the world’s most protracted humanitarian crises.  With news footage of Ghassan Abu Sittah pale and shell-shocked reverberating around the world, the film tells the stories of horrors from lacerated bodies to amputations without anesthetics, orphaned children with no surviving family, and the deliberate targeting of medics and hospital facilities.

12.11 at 18:00 [SuperNova - BFM]
Divine Interventions (2002)

[As Elia Suleiman said, “It is a form of resistance to actually laugh. Especially when you laugh in the face of oppression and authority.” Hence, a screening of one of the biting satires from the filmography of Elia Suleiman.]

Santa Claus tries to outrun a gang of knife-wielding youth. It’s one of several vignettes of Palestinian life in Israel - in a neighborhood in Nazareth and at Al-Ram checkpoint in East Jerusalem. Most of the stories are droll, some absurd, one is mythic and fanciful; few words are spoken. A man who goes through his mail methodically each morning has a heart attack. His son visits him in the hospital. The son regularly meets a woman at Al-Ram; they sit in a car, hands caressing. Once, she defies Israeli guards at the checkpoint; later, ninja-like, she takes on soldiers at a target range. A red balloon floats free overhead. Neighbors toss garbage over walls. Life goes on until it doesn’t. (Text Source: Letterboxd)

26.11 at 18:00 [SuperNova - BFM]
Retrospective of Jocelyne Saab’s Work 

• Palestinian Women (1974)
• Beirut Trilogy  
  - Beirut, Never Again (1976)
  - Letter from Beirut (1978)
  - Beirut My City (1982)

Jocelyne Saab (Lebanon/France) was an artist, photographer, filmmaker, producer, and journalist born in Beirut in 1948. She is considered a pioneer of Lebanese cinema. Her filmmaking practice focused on the disadvantaged—from displaced people to exiled fighters, cities at war, and a Fourth World without a voice. Her work is grounded in representations of historic violence and an awareness of the actions and images required to document and counteract it. (Text Source: Media City Film Festival 2024)

12.12 at 18:00 [SuperNova - BFM]
Wajib (2017) by Annemarie Jacir

After years abroad in Italy, Shadi returns to his native Nazareth. But this is no spectacular homecoming. He’s back somewhat begrudgingly to honour his “wajib” (or duty) to hand out invitations to his sister’s wedding with his father. The simmering tension between the two — who are often stuck in a car, more often than not in traffic — builds, exposing the sometimes-comic chasms that exist between men who live in different worlds but share an unshakable bond. (Text Source: Letterboxd)