ArabishWay

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - Tel Aviv on Fire
2019-05-30 19:00 - 21:00 UTC | AMC Pacific Place, 600 Pine St suite 400, Seattle, WA, 98101, United States
SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) – Tel Aviv on Fire (Palestinian Director)
In this clever comedy from writer/director Sameh Zoabi, Salam is a hapless 30-something production assistant on his uncle’s TV show, a popular Palestinian soap opera called “Tel Aviv On Fire.” Set in 1967, just a few months before the start of the Six-Day War, the show is a huge hit with audiences on both sides of the divide. Things start looking up for Salam when an offhand remark impresses the show’s star and results in his promotion to writer. The promotion even impresses Miriam, Salam’s ex-girlfriend, whom he hopes to win back. Living in Jerusalem, he must pass through the Ramallah checkpoint every day to get to the studio. One day he’s interrogated by Israeli military commander Assi, whose wife just happens to be a huge fan of the show. Assi is full of ideas for improving the script (and impressing his wife), which works to Salam’s advantage—until Assi and the show’s producers want to take the story in distinctly different directions. With the season finale looming, it’s up to Salam to figure out a resolution that will keep everyone happy.
— Justine Barda
Director Biography
Sameh Zoabi was born in 1975 in Iskal, a Palestinian village near the city of Nazareth. He graduated from Tel Aviv University with a dual degree in Film Studies and English Literature before earning a Fulbright Fellowship to earn his MFA in Filmmaking from Columbia University in 2005. With films like Tel Aviv On Fire (2018), Zoabi seeks to invoke humor in difficult narratives, stating, “We talk about Palestine being a place that is very hard, but I always remember people laughing all the time.” In addition to filmmaking, Zoabi is an adjunct professor at NYU Tisch School of the Arts, Hunter College, and Columbia University’s MFA program, teaching courses in direction, production, and screenwriting.

Sponsored by Diageo Americas, Inc., The Fools
Showtimes and locations can be found here: https://www.siff.net/festival/tel-aviv-on-fire
Thursday, May 30, 2019, AMC Pacific Place, 7pm
Friday, May 31, 2019, SIFF Cinema Uptown, 3:30pm

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - Tel Aviv on Fire
2019-05-31 15:30 - 17:30 | SIFF Cinema Uptown, 511 Queen Anne Ave N,, Seattle, WA, 98109, United States

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - Funke
2019-05-31 18:30 - 20:30 | AMC Pacific Place, 600 Pine St suite 400, Seattle, WA, 98101, United States
SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) – Funke (Arab director)
n 2015, Evan Funke was one of the brightest stars on the American culinary scene. Bucato, his first critically lauded restaurant, served capacity crowds night after night. But when allegations of fraud and financial malfeasance forced its closure, Funke became persona non grata in the Los Angeles restaurant world. Director Gab Taraboulsy’s engrossing documentary portrait of the chef follows Funke as he embarks upon his comeback. Still healing from the emotional pain of his past failure, Funke struggles to balance his artistic aspirations with the rank commercial difficulties of opening his new trattoria, Felix, on the most competitive street for restaurants in America. His journey toward redemption sees him voyaging through the pasta schools of Bologna (to reconnect with his mentor, Alessandra Spisni), the culinary archaeological streets of Bari, and the obsessive laboratories of Tokyo as he reconnects with the best artisan pasta makers in the world. Throughout this journey, Taraboulsy delivers keen insight into the chef’s philosophy and intricate techniques as he handcrafts fresh, heirloom pastas that even the most avid Italian foodies may never have seen or tasted. Passionate and thoughtful, Funke is an ode to the art of pasta and a forthright look at the stark realities of the restaurant business.
— Dan Doody
Director Biography
Deeply passionate about the culinary world, Gab Taraboulsy has been unearthing stories, as a writer, director, and producer, in kitchens and restaurants all over the world. His documentary series “The Grill Iron” (2014) garnered a James Beard Nomination, and “Heritage” (2016) won a Webby Award for Best Documentary Series. Returning to Los Angeles’s competitive food scene, Funke (2018) is Taraboulsy’s documentary feature debut.
Sponsored by KIXI 880 AM, Princi, Punch Drunk
Showtimes and locations can be found here: https://www.siff.net/festival/funke
Monday, May 27, 2019 – Lincoln Square, 6:00pm
Friday, May 31, 2019 – AMC Pacific Place, 6:30pm
Saturday, June 1, 2o19 – SIFF Cinema Uptown, 3:00pm

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - Funke
2019-06-01 15:00 - 17:00 | SIFF Cinema Uptown, 511 Queen Anne Ave N,, Seattle, WA, 98109, United States

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - For Sama
2019-06-02 18:30 - 20:30 | AMC Pacific Place, 600 Pine St suite 400, Seattle, WA, 98101, United States
SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) – For Sama (Syrian Director, about Syria)
Winner of both the Audience Award and Grand Jury Award for Documentary at the 2019 SXSW Film Festival, For Sama stands as both a harrowing witness to the Syrian tragedy as it unfolded in Aleppo and a touching love letter from a mother to her young child. While the bombs are falling across her city, director Waad al-Kateab films her first-person diaristic letter to her recently born daughter Sama, uncertain she will survive long enough for Sama to know her mother outside of the videos she shoots. Unsparing in its details and unflinching in what it captures, al-Kateab’s work reveals the brutal impact of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad’s civil war, relaying its impact in palpably humanistic terms. Both in the home they share and at the hospital where Waad’s husband labors as a direct responder to those affected by the daily violence, al-Kateab’s camera captures the human cost of life under perpetual conflict more directly and powerfully than perhaps any other film since Five Broken Cameras. To quote Jordan Mintzer of The Hollywood Reporter, “The result is a series of deeply powerful images showing the human casualties of a war that most of us witnessed from our TV sets or computer screens.”

Director Biography
Waad Al-Kateab is a documentary filmmaker who became a citizen journalist in 2011, after protests broke out across Syria against the Assad regime. In 2016, she began?documenting the Syrian conflict in a series of films titled “Inside Aleppo.” These news reports received almost half-a-billion views online, and won 24 awards, including the 2016 International Emmy for breaking news coverage. She and her family were eventually evacuated from Aleppo in 2016. For Sama is her first feature film. Edward Watts is an Emmy award-winning, BAFTA-nominated filmmaker who has directed over 20 narrative and documentary films that illuminate the resilience of the human spirit despite harrowing circumstances.

Showtimes and locations can be found here: https://www.siff.net/festival/for-sama
Sunday, June 2, 2019 – AMC Pacific Place, 6:30pm

Monday, June 3, 2019 – SIFF Cinema Uptown, 4pm

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - For Sama
2019-06-03 16:00 - 18:00 | SIFF Cinema Uptown, 511 Queen Anne Ave N,, Seattle, WA, 98109, United States
SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) – For Sama (Syrian Director, about Syria)
Winner of both the Audience Award and Grand Jury Award for Documentary at the 2019 SXSW Film Festival, For Sama stands as both a harrowing witness to the Syrian tragedy as it unfolded in Aleppo and a touching love letter from a mother to her young child. While the bombs are falling across her city, director Waad al-Kateab films her first-person diaristic letter to her recently born daughter Sama, uncertain she will survive long enough for Sama to know her mother outside of the videos she shoots. Unsparing in its details and unflinching in what it captures, al-Kateab’s work reveals the brutal impact of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad’s civil war, relaying its impact in palpably humanistic terms. Both in the home they share and at the hospital where Waad’s husband labors as a direct responder to those affected by the daily violence, al-Kateab’s camera captures the human cost of life under perpetual conflict more directly and powerfully than perhaps any other film since Five Broken Cameras. To quote Jordan Mintzer of The Hollywood Reporter, “The result is a series of deeply powerful images showing the human casualties of a war that most of us witnessed from our TV sets or computer screens.”

Director Biography
Waad Al-Kateab is a documentary filmmaker who became a citizen journalist in 2011, after protests broke out across Syria against the Assad regime. In 2016, she began documenting the Syrian conflict in a series of films titled “Inside Aleppo.” These news reports received almost half-a-billion views online, and won 24 awards, including the 2016 International Emmy for breaking news coverage. She and her family were eventually evacuated from Aleppo in 2016. For Sama is her first feature film. Edward Watts is an Emmy award-winning, BAFTA-nominated filmmaker who has directed over 20 narrative and documentary films that illuminate the resilience of the human spirit despite harrowing circumstances.

Showtimes and locations can be found here: https://www.siff.net/festival/for-sama
Sunday, June 2, 2019 – AMC Pacific Place, 6:30pm

Monday, June 3, 2019 – SIFF Cinema Uptown, 4pm

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - What Walaa Wants
2019-06-04 21:30 - 23:30 | AMC Pacific Place, 600 Pine St suite 400, Seattle, WA, 98101, United States
SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) – What Walaa Wants (About Palestine)
Growing up in Balata, a refugee camp in the West Bank, Walaa dreams of being a police officer with the Palestinian National Authority, the entity governing the Palestinian territories. This documentary follows her progress over five years, from ages 15 to 21, as she pursues that goal. She’s got her work cut out for her; rebellious and headstrong, she is often at odds with those around her. She doesn’t adapt easily to the discipline of basic training or the tough love of her commanding officer. At home, a complicated relationship with her mother poses its own challenges (she was 7 when her mother was sent to prison, convicted of helping a would-be suicide bomber). And the outside world in which she lives her daily life is one of uncertainty, repression, and violence. But despite these obstacles, Walaa is tenacious; she is charting her own path and struggling to follow it. With remarkable access to her subject at home, at school, and at work, in interactions with family, friends, and colleagues, filmmaker Christy Garland tells the story of a young woman determined to take charge of her life.
— Justine Barda

Showtimes and locations can be found here: https://www.siff.net/festival/what-walaa-wants
Friday, May 17, 2019 – AMC Pacific Place, 1:30pm
Tuesday, June 4, 2019 – AMC Pacific Place, 9:30pm
Wednesday, June 5, 2019 – SIFF Cinema Uptown, 4pm

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - What Walaa Wants
2019-06-05 16:00 - 18:00 | SIFF Cinema Uptown, 511 Queen Anne Ave N,, Seattle, WA, 98109, United States

Mideast Focus Film Series 2019 - Wajib
2019-06-07 19:00 - 21:00 | St Marks Cathedral, 1245 Tenth Avenue East, Seattle, WA, 98102-4398, United States
WAJIB
Palestinian architect Shadi, living in Rome, returns home to Nazareth to help his father deliver his sister’s wedding invitations. As they two men try to bridge the gap between their different lives, they rediscover the importance of finding “home” and community.
The Mideast Focus Ministry will offer its sixth series of films to promote understanding of the situation in Palestine. Our theme this year is “Finding Home”. We will consider various aspects of being a refugee, in Palestine, as well as many other places in this 21st century world. We hope to understand more about the experiences of refugees who seek to make a safe home for their families.

Movie Showing: Free Trip to Egypt
2019-06-12 19:00 - 21:00 | Multiple Locations, WA, United States
Tarek Mounib, of Zurich, had an inspiration to invite people who are afraid/opposed/don’t understand Islam, or the people and places of the Middle East, to a FREE TRIP TO EGYPT. There they would meet the families, eat the food, walk in the neighborhoods and otherwise just get to spend time with people who have been portrayed and vilified as “the other”. And Tarek, a young man born in Canada, raised in Egypt, educated in both, would film what happened.
He’s done it! Kindness Films will show Tarek’s film Free Trip to Egypt in 500 theaters across the country on June 12, 2019. (The film will play longer in New York and LA.)

This is citizen diplomacy and peacemaking of the highest order. Through this movie we can see the change in people’s hearts and minds.
You can watch the trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OitVw2gE6aQ&t=7s

All shows are at 7:00pm on June 12

Regal Bella Bottega 11 Cinema, 8890 NE 161st Avenue, Redmond, WA 98052
Regal Thorton Place 14, 316 NE Thorton Place, Seattle, WA 98125
AMC Pacific Place, 600 Pine Street, Seattle, WA 98101-1712

Book your tickets here: https://www.fathomevents.com/events/free-trip-to-egypt

SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) - Tel Aviv on Fire - Won Best of SIFF!
2019-06-19 18:45 - 20:30 | SIFF Cinema Uptown, 511 Queen Anne Ave N,, Seattle, WA, 98109, United States
SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival 2019) – Tel Aviv on Fire (Palestinian Director)
This movie won for people’s choice! So is playing again!
In this clever comedy from writer/director Sameh Zoabi, Salam is a hapless 30-something production assistant on his uncle’s TV show, a popular Palestinian soap opera called “Tel Aviv On Fire.” Set in 1967, just a few months before the start of the Six-Day War, the show is a huge hit with audiences on both sides of the divide. Things start looking up for Salam when an offhand remark impresses the show’s star and results in his promotion to writer. The promotion even impresses Miriam, Salam’s ex-girlfriend, whom he hopes to win back. Living in Jerusalem, he must pass through the Ramallah checkpoint every day to get to the studio. One day he’s interrogated by Israeli military commander Assi, whose wife just happens to be a huge fan of the show. Assi is full of ideas for improving the script (and impressing his wife), which works to Salam’s advantage—until Assi and the show’s producers want to take the story in distinctly different directions. With the season finale looming, it’s up to Salam to figure out a resolution that will keep everyone happy.
— Justine Barda
Director Biography
Sameh Zoabi was born in 1975 in Iskal, a Palestinian village near the city of Nazareth. He graduated from Tel Aviv University with a dual degree in Film Studies and English Literature before earning a Fulbright Fellowship to earn his MFA in Filmmaking from Columbia University in 2005. With films like Tel Aviv On Fire (2018), Zoabi seeks to invoke humor in difficult narratives, stating, “We talk about Palestine being a place that is very hard, but I always remember people laughing all the time.” In addition to filmmaking, Zoabi is an adjunct professor at NYU Tisch School of the Arts, Hunter College, and Columbia University’s MFA program, teaching courses in direction, production, and screenwriting.

Sponsored by Diageo Americas, Inc., The Fools
Showtimes and locations can be found here: https://www.siff.net/festival/tel-aviv-on-fire
Thursday, May 30, 2019, AMC Pacific Place, 7pm
Friday, May 31, 2019, SIFF Cinema Uptown, 3:30pm

Movie Showing: Make Hummus Not Walls
2019-07-06 19:30 - 21:30 | The Summit on Pike, Capitol Hill) 420 E Pike St, Seattle, WA, 98102, United States
Movie Screening: Make Hummus Not Walls
Saturday, July 6th at 7:30 p.m. at The Summit (420 E Pike Street, Seattle).
This event features a movie made by one of our missionaries, and the conversation to follow will be led by our January Israel trip guides. The conversation will feature personal stories amid the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. You can read more about the movie by Andrew Larsen by clicking here. – Kent Covenant Church

Seattle Arabian Nights Festival 2019 – LGBTQ Shorts
2019-09-19 19:30 - 22:00 | Northwest Film Forum, 1515 12th Ave, 2, Seattle, WA, 98122, United States
Seattle Arabian Nights Festival 2019 – LGBTQ Shorts at Northwest Film Forum
Seattle Arabian Nights Festival seeks out and presents contemporary short films from all over the globe that provide insight into the artistic spirit, complexity, and diversity of the Arab world. Their goal is to empower new Arab storytelling talents by creating a unique ecosystem that connects and supports Arab film and media projects.

Discover cinema’s next great genius at Seattle Arabian Nights!

Becoming American Film Discussion: Welcome to Shelbyville
2019-10-03 18:00 - 19:30 | KCLS- Shoreline, 345 NE 175th Street, Shoreline, WA, 98155, United States
Join us for a screening of the documentary Welcome to Shelbyville. The film (66 minutes) will be followed by a short facilitated discussion.
Shelbyville’s long-time residents are challenged with how to best integrate the recent arrival of hundreds of Somali refugees of Muslim faith hired by the local Tyson chicken-processing plant.

Gaza Fights for Freedom - Movie at Northwest Film Forum
2019-10-09 19:30 - 21:30 | Northwest Film Forum, 1515 12th Ave, 2, Seattle, WA, 98122, United States
Gaza Fights for Freedom
This debut feature film by journalist Abby Martin began while reporting in Palestine, where she was denied entry into Gaza by the Israeli government on the accusation she was a “propagandist.” So Abby connected with a team of journalists in Gaza to produce the film through the blockade.
This collaboration shows you Gaza’s protest movement like you’ve never seen before. Filmed during the height of the Great March of Return protests, it features exclusive footage of demonstrations where 200 unarmed civilians have been killed by Israeli snipers since March 30, 2018.
The documentary tells the story of Gaza past and present, showing rare archival footage that explains the history never acknowledged by mass media. Victims are heard from the ongoing massacre, including journalists, medics and the family of internationally-acclaimed paramedic, Razan al-Najjar.

Hurdle: Social Justice Film Festival
2019-10-12 19:00 - 21:00 | University Heights Center, 5031 University Way, Seattle, WA, 98105, United States
Hurdle

As the Israeli military occupation of the Palestinian territories approached its 50th year, Hurdlereveals an intimate story emerging from the actions of Palestinian youth. This new generation responds to a world of walls, checkpoints and arrests in an unexpected way. Hurdle’s protagonists, Sami and Mohammad, begin teaching the creative practices of parkour and photography, respectively, to the youth of their communities as a means to overcome the personal and political obstacles that often feel inescapable. Though these young men are separated by a wall, they are united in leading the next generation toward freedom and self-determination through creative practices.
(Michael Rowley, 87 min, USA)
This movie is part of the Social Justice Festival: Find out more »

Lebanese-American Actress Kathy Najimy in Hocus Pocus at Central Cinema
2019-10-25 16:15 - 18:30, 2019-10-25 19:00 - 21:00, 2019-10-26 13:30 - 15:00, 2019-10-26 19:00 - 21:00, 2019-10-27 13:30 - 15:30, 2019-10-28 16:15 - 18:15, 2019-10-29 16:15 - 18:15, 2019-10-29 19:00 - 21:00 and 2 more dates | Central Cinema, 1411 21st Ave (at 21st & Union ), Seattle, WA, 98122, United States
After three centuries, three witch sisters are resurrected in Salem Massachusetts on Halloween night, and it is up to two teenagers, a young girl, and an immortal cat to put an end to the witches’ reign of terror once and for all.
Starring Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and the actress of Lebanese descent Kathy Najimy!

Film : Genre: Action,Comedy,Sci-Fi, 1993

For Sama - movie - Northwest Film Forum
2019-11-06 19:00 - 21:00 | Northwest Film Forum, 1515 12th Ave, 2, Seattle, WA, 98122, United States
For Sama is both an intimate and epic journey into the female experience of war. A love letter from a young mother to her daughter, the film tells the story of Waad al-Kateab’s life through five years of the uprising in Aleppo, Syria as she falls in love, gets married and gives birth to Sama, all while cataclysmic conflict rises around her.
Her camera captures incredible stories of loss, laughter and survival as Waad wrestles with an impossible choice – whether or not to flee the city to protect her daughter’s life, when leaving means abandoning the struggle for freedom for which she has already sacrificed so much.
For Sama is the first feature documentary by Emmy award-winning filmmakers, Waad al-Kateab and Edward Watts. The film was awarded the Prix L’Œil d’Or for Best Documentary at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival. It also won the Grand Jury Award for Best Documentary at the SXSW Film Festival, and the Special Jury Prize for International Feature Documentary at the Hot Docs Festival.
All images courtesy of PBS. For full-resolution images and accompanying credits, click here.

Wed Nov 06: 7.00pm

Thu Nov 07: 7.30pm

Sat Nov 09: 6.15pm

Sun Nov 10: 7.30pm

$13 General Admission
$10 Student/Child/Senior
$7 Member

For Sama - movie - Northwest Film Forum
2019-11-07 19:30 - 21:30 | Northwest Film Forum, 1515 12th Ave, 2, Seattle, WA, 98122, United States
For Sama is both an intimate and epic journey into the female experience of war. A love letter from a young mother to her daughter, the film tells the story of Waad al-Kateab’s life through five years of the uprising in Aleppo, Syria as she falls in love, gets married and gives birth to Sama, all while cataclysmic conflict rises around her.
Her camera captures incredible stories of loss, laughter and survival as Waad wrestles with an impossible choice – whether or not to flee the city to protect her daughter’s life, when leaving means abandoning the struggle for freedom for which she has already sacrificed so much.
For Sama is the first feature documentary by Emmy award-winning filmmakers, Waad al-Kateab and Edward Watts. The film was awarded the Prix L’Œil d’Or for Best Documentary at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival. It also won the Grand Jury Award for Best Documentary at the SXSW Film Festival, and the Special Jury Prize for International Feature Documentary at the Hot Docs Festival.
All images courtesy of PBS. For full-resolution images and accompanying credits, click here.

Thu Nov 07: 7.30pm

Sat Nov 09: 6.15pm

Sun Nov 10: 7.30pm

$13 General Admission
$10 Student/Child/Senior
$7 Member

The Battle of Algiers (film) at the Beacon
2019-11-08 18:30 - 21:00 | The Beacon, 4405 Rainier Ave S, Seattle, WA, 98118, United States
Synopsis:
A history of the three-year Battle of Algiers, chronicling the escalating terrorism and violence between French military forces and the Algerian guerrilla movement.
Best Foreign Language Film nomination (Academy Awards, 1967)
Best Director nomination – Gillo Pontecorvo (Academy Awards, 1969)
Best Writing, Story & Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen nomination – Franco Solinas, Gillo Pontecorvo (Academy Awards, 1969)
UN Award (BAFTA, 1972)
Run time: 2h 3min

For Sama - movie - Northwest Film Forum
2019-11-09 18:15 - 20:15 | Northwest Film Forum, 1515 12th Ave, 2, Seattle, WA, 98122, United States
For Sama is both an intimate and epic journey into the female experience of war. A love letter from a young mother to her daughter, the film tells the story of Waad al-Kateab’s life through five years of the uprising in Aleppo, Syria as she falls in love, gets married and gives birth to Sama, all while cataclysmic conflict rises around her.
Her camera captures incredible stories of loss, laughter and survival as Waad wrestles with an impossible choice – whether or not to flee the city to protect her daughter’s life, when leaving means abandoning the struggle for freedom for which she has already sacrificed so much.
For Sama is the first feature documentary by Emmy award-winning filmmakers, Waad al-Kateab and Edward Watts. The film was awarded the Prix L’Œil d’Or for Best Documentary at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival. It also won the Grand Jury Award for Best Documentary at the SXSW Film Festival, and the Special Jury Prize for International Feature Documentary at the Hot Docs Festival.
All images courtesy of PBS. For full-resolution images and accompanying credits, click here.

Sat Nov 09: 6.15pm

Sun Nov 10: 7.30pm

$13 General Admission
$10 Student/Child/Senior
$7 Member
