Boston Palestine Film Fest pushes ahead with rescheduled screenings
After a postponement in October, the Boston Palestine Film Festival returns for its 17th season with several in-person screenings this month. The festival has three features set for Friday and Saturday at the Museum of Fine Arts and a closing-night documentary, Khaled Jarrar’s “Notes on Displacement,” screening Jan. 25 at the MassArt Design and Media Center.
Program director Michael Maria said the decision to postpone amid the Israel-Hamas war was a difficult one.
“Even though there’s still so much trauma on the ground, it’s important to reestablish a safe space for the Palestinian community and broaden the network to convene,” he said.
This year’s feature films include “Alam (The Flag),” directed by Firas Khoury, a youthful romance that involves a daring plan to fly the Palestinian flag on Israel’s Independence Day; “Mediterranean Fever,” directed by Maha Haj, a darkly comic drama about a depressed writer who befriends a lawbreaking neighbor; and “A House in Jerusalem,” directed by Muayad Alayan, a thriller about a young girl whose family moves into a home in the holy city that is harboring secrets.
It’s important, Maria said, to show a full range of Palestinian filmmaking. “We want the audience to walk away entertained.”
“Notes on Displacement” depicts the plight of the refugee through the eyes of one family, whose matriarch is an elderly Palestinian woman who had to flee her home long ago. Now, decades later, she finds herself swept up in the Syrian refugee crisis.
“A House in Jerusalem” is being copresented by Jewish Voice for Peace Boston and the Boston Underground Film Festival. This is not the first time the Boston Palestine Film Festival has partnered with Jewish Voice for Peace.
“To me, this is critical,” said Maria. Given the ongoing conflict in Gaza, he expects a surge of interest in this year’s festival, due to “the fact that it’s happening, and there are forces that feel it shouldn’t be.”