Sacrifices (Sunduq al-Dunya) by Oussama Mohammad (Syria/France, 2002, 113 min., 35 mm)

Synopsis:
In a remote Syrian village, an aging patriarch seeks to pass on his name to one of his grandsons before he dies. Unfortunately, he can no longer tell the growing number of grandchildren apart. Three of his descendants wander nameless through a fantastical world, searching for pleasure and salvation. The first finds it in self-effacement and submission, the second in love and the third in power, violence and cruelty. As an eternal witness of life, a village tree is witness to their quest as it has unfolded time and time again over the last 2,000 years.
In Arabic with English subtitles.

Post-screening panel discussion with Souheil Shadoud (Columbia University) and Rasha Salti (ArteEast, NYC & Ashkal-Alwan, Beirut)

Biography:
Born in Latakia, Syria, in 1954, Oussama Mohammad is one of his country's leading filmmakers. He graduated from Institut des Hautes Etudes Cinématographiques in Moscow in 1979 and since then has been the director of the National Cinema Organization in Damascus. He co-wrote the film The Night with Muhammad Malas (1992) and directed the acclaimed classic of Arab cinema, Etoiles du Jour (Stars in broad daylight, 1988).

Festivals & Awards:
Official Selection, Un Certain Regard, Cannes, 2002
Special Jury Award, Bienniale des Cinémas Arabes, Paris, 2002
Grand Prize, Festival Internacional de Cinema da Figueira da Foz, Portugal, 2002
Best Photography Award, Grand Jury Prize, Alexandria International Film Festival, 2002
Journées Cinématographiques de Carthage, 2002
London Film Festival, 2002
International Film Festival Rotterdam, 2003

Reveiws:
Few films bring Arab cinema to a whole new level like Syrian director Oussama Mohammad’s Sunduq al-Dunya (Sacrifices). Sacrifices is a highly stylized film concerned with themes of possession, righteousness, innocence and the afterlife....Carefully shot and framed in continuous, dreamlike sequences, the film is...a feast for the eyes...and shouldn’t be missed.
-Calgary’s News & Entertainment Weekly