1. ‘For Sama‘: Witness to the Syrian unrest herself, filmmaker Waad Al Khateab has done justice to the depiction of the country under civil war. She tells the story of how Al Khateab falls in love with a doctor at Syria’s only functioning hospital at the time and emotes the heartwrenching conflict of having to choose between fighting for her country’s freedom or leaving it for the safety of her child, Sama. The film, which won big at Cannes Film Festival this year, is an open letter to her daughter.

2. ‘The Cave‘: From 2016-2018, Feras Fayyad dedicated his time to create this teleport-like experience to the subterranean landscape of Syria, which has been made uninhabitable by warlords. A close equivalent of Mad Max, the film bagged the People’s Choice Documentary Award at Toronto International Film Festival 2019.
 

3. ‘This Is Not a Movie‘: The film is based on the journey of Robert Fisk, the renowned Middle East-based journalist with an impeccable career on his reporting missions from Syria to Bosnia.

4. ‘The Human Factor‘: Taking camera space in this depiction of attempted peace dealings between Israel an Palestine are lead politicians, Bill Clinton, Yasser Arafat and Ehud Barrak. With the interviews spanning over 25 years, the filmmaker has artistically brought their stories to life.

5. ‘The Advocate’: This film follows the riveting story of Israeli attorney Lea Tsemel who has devoted several years defending Palestinians in courts.

6. ‘Midnight Traveler‘: A nomadic picturization of the family of Hassan Fazili, as he flees war-torn Afghanistan. Shot on cell phones, this wondrous documentary is the story of Hassan, his wife Fatima and their daughters Nagris and Zahra as they were uprooted and forced to settle in other countries.

Taking place in the Empire city-New York, the screenings will be held across various venues some being Cineapolis Chelsea and IFC Center. 

Image courtesy: docnyc.net