To My Father
By: Abdelsalam Shehade
Those were the days when
girls were prettier, when eyes were in all colours, without any colour. What's
Different now - the camera, or the eyes?" asks Abdel Salam Shehadah's
poetic and mesmerizing homage to the studio photographers of the 1950's - 70's.
Set partly in a refugee camp in Rafah, this is a remarkable look back at fifty
years of Palestinian and Arab history, through photographs, reportage and the
voices of these photographers today.To My Father is a deeply personal and moving film that confirms the talent of
Gaza-born director Shahadah, who having worked all over the world as a
director, cameraman and journalist, recently turned to film making. A photo here
is not just a photo: it brings history to life.
Ramallah. A free spirited woman dancer, Kamar, finds herself the wife of a prisoner, Zaid, and away from everthing. When she returns to dance, she is confronted to Kais, a Palestinian returnee, who has taken her role as the head choreographer. Kamar's life is thrown into turmoil as she becomes increasingly attached to Kais, and caught in the midst of her desire to dance and breaking the family and society taboos of the prisoner's wife's role while life under occupation rages on.