We are Here: Short Videos from Lebanon

September 15 - April 30, 2008
2007

Films included in this selection are available for screening on Mini-DV PAL or DVD PAL/NTSC with English subtitles.

In the past few years digital video technology has been credited with quietly generating a revolution in film production. During the summer 2006 Israeli assault on Lebanon, it allowed filmmakers, artists and activists to record what they were witnessing and experiencing and offered a forum to create work immediately related to the war. The compulsion to construct an audio-visual document of the violence came not only from a desire for an alternative to broadcast media; but also from an eagerness to compile an archive of the assault, because both the 17-year civil war and the numerous Israeli military campaigns since the 1960’s have scant records. The assault also stirred schisms, tensions and unresolved issues that had been lying dormant in the social and political body of Lebanon throughout its post-war years. In the face of trauma and the memory of past traumas, filmmakers reacted by producing short films, some in the framework of a commissioned project, others self-produced. This touring collection, We Are Here, attests to the amazing diversity of approach, genre and talent in how artists and filmmakers reacted to the war. The works are bold in subject matter and approach and do not shy away from voicing a critical engagement with taboo subjects, or being deeply subjective or self-consciously militant.
 
CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE PROGRAM

ArteEast will be responsible for providing participating institutions with tapes/DVDs, program notes, and publicity materials (all available as downloads on our website www.arteeast.org). ArteEast will post information on its website about screenings at participating institutions and provide links to screening schedules.

Participating institutions will be responsible for covering the cost of shipping and insurance as well as the applicable screening fees listed below. Institutions will also be responsible for any damage to the films while in their possession and during shipping. Please consult your insurance carriers for details and requirements.

All publicity materials for this program must include the following acknowledgment: “A Touring Exhibition, curated by Rasha Salti and organized by ArteEast (www.arteeast.org) as well as feature ArteEast’s logo.

If you are interested in hosting the program, please contact Salima Semmar at filminfo@arteeast.org or call +1 718 282 5938 at your earliest possible convenience to secure dates and coordinate print traffic.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Rasha Salti
Program Curator

Program / Screening fees:

Program 1 (RT: 71 mins.)
To the Lebanese Citizens (Ali Cherry): RT: 2 mins.
Lebanon/War: Dailies of the War (Rania Stephan): RT: 47 mins.
Tank You (Ziad Antar): RT: 12 mins.
No Connection (Myriam Sassine): RT: 10 mins.

Screening fee: $400

Program 2 (RT: 62 mins.)
In-Between (Nadine Ghanem): RT: 10 minutes
Breaking News (Hisham Jaber): RT: 10 mins.
You Can Come In (Mahmoud Hojeij): RT: 23 mins.
Slippage (Ali Cherri): RT: 12 mins.

Screening fee: $350