August 10, 2006


Shocked by the arrogance and brutality of the current US-backed Israeli assault on Lebanon, myself and Gabe Klinger have hammered out a screening of two films by Lebanese filmmakers whose work is of great interest. This Chicago screening is in solidarity with the Lebanese civilian population and all proceeds will go to medical and political organizations in need.

Wael Nourredine's film CA SERA BEAU (FROM BEYROUTH WITH LOVE, 2005) is part of the program and paints a complex, radically discordant view of Hariri's Beirut. What some call a brief period of peace after 30 years of civil war was completely shattered in July by massive Israeli strikes. But Wael's film is anything but sanguine about this period. This Beirut is the one fatigued by war's memory,with constant military presence, Starbucks, surveillance, drug-use, apathy, suicide, rage, picture postcards and religion. The film opens with the still burning wreckage of a car-bomb that killed the western-friendly Hariri and reflects the dissatisfaction of a society at war with intruding interests.

Here is the press release for the screening:

RECENT FILM AND VIDEO WORKS FROM LEBANON: A screening to benefit Lebanese civilians in need of food, shelter and medical supplies. 
The program will consist of: 
"Ça cera beau. From Beirut with Love" by Waël Noureddine (30', 2005, Lebanon/France) U.S. Premiere. Mutilated, the city of Beirut shows its wounds from years of war. The architecture, along with the many bullet-holed walls and ruined buildings, affects the psychological health of its inhabitants. The strong military presence only adds to this void, which leaves young people to choose between drugs, the army, or religion. + a video interview with Noureddine (3') 
"Untitled Part 3b: (As If) Beauty Never Ends" by Jayce Salloum (11'22, 2003, Lebanon/Canada) Beauty persists even in the most desperate conditions: this video essay superimposes images of orchids in bloom over refugee camp conditions after the Sabra and Shatilla massacre in 1982. + a video introduction by/with Salloum (3')
The entire program will run approximately one hour. Suggested admission: $5.00. 
Two screening dates: 
FRIDAY, AUGUST 18 at 7:30 PM  
SATURDAY, AUGUST 19 at 4:00 PM 
Location: Columbia College Ludington Building 1104 South Wabash Avenue Third Floor Auditorium (Room 302)
Proceeds go directly to the Lebanese Red Cross, Hamoud Hospital in South Lebanon, and Samidoun Coalition, which runs the Sanayeh Relief Center in Beirut (see websites below).
For more information, contact Gabe Klinger at gabe.klinger@sbcglobal.net or kinoslang@hotmail.com
Thank you for your support.
 -- For details about the beneficiaries, please consult the websites of these organizations: 
OpenDocument Samidoun: http://www.samidoun.org

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