'In the Battlefields (Maarek hob)' - Global Lens Film Festival at SFAI September 27, 2006

About the Film
Set against the former conflict in Lebanon, this involving family drama focuses on 12-year-old Lina (Marianne Feghali), who doesn’t show much interest in the war taking place in 1980s Beirut. The only child in a family torn apart by the father’s chronic gambling, Lina becomes fascinated with Siham (Rawia Elchab), the free-spirited adolescent who works as a maid for her aunt. As the girls’ relationship develops and shifts, issues of loyalty and power set off a series of events that isolate Lina even more. The war zone is in the background in this absorbing emotional tale.

In Arabic with English subtitles.
Writer/Director: Danielle Arbid. (Lebanon 2004) 90 min.

San Francisco Art Institute is proud to present Global Lens 2006. Now in its fourth year, Global Lens offers international feature-length films organized by The Global Film Initiative, a non-profit organization founded to promote cross-cultural understanding through cinema. Recognizing that great storytelling can influence human affairs as well as foster trust and respect between disparate cultures, The Global Film Initiative reaches out to independent filmmakers around the world and debuts their films in the US.

San Francisco Art Institute, California Film Institute, Grand Lake Theater, and the Mexican Heritage Plaza are the exclusive Northern California partners for the Global Lens tour, which includes special outreach presentations for school groups as well as the following public screenings at SFAI. Visit the SFAI website for complete film notes.

September 6
Stolen Life (Sheng si jie)

September 11
Thirst (Atash)

September 13
Cinema, Aspirins and Vultures (Cinema, aspirinas e urubus)

September 18
Global Shorts

September 20
Almost Brothers (Quase dois irmãos)

September 25
Max and Mona

September 27
In the Battlefields (Maarek hob)

October 2
Border Café (Café Transit)

October 4
The Night of Truth (La Nuit de la vérité)

Official Website: http://www.sfai.edu