PANEL DISCUSSION: The Arab City Re-envisioned: Diasporic perspectives.

The panel will address the modes and possibilities of narrating Arab cities from diasporic perspectives in cinema. What challenges, and legal and political hindrances do Arab filmmakers face when they embark on filming their cities? How can diasporic filmmakers from the arab world engage with the urban cultures and the diverse domains of everyday life in their home cities? What role can imagination, memory, and techniques of archival exploration play in reclaiming (lost) home cities? How far can exiles be remade to accommodate native senses and conceptions of urbanity?

Mohamad El-Hadidi is a Berlin-based filmmaker and co-founder of Rufy’s Films. He is an alumnus of the Berlinale Talents 2018. Films Hadidi has worked on have been screened across the world at festivals such as Berlinale, IDFA, TIFF, Tampere, São Paulo, Dubai, AFI Fest, and DOK Leipzig.

Émilie Serri is a Montreal based filmmaker, installation artist and curator. Distributed by LightCone in Paris, her work has travelled to international festivals, artist centres, and galleries throughout Canada. In 2018, she won the Bronfman Award in contemporary art.

Guevara Namer is a Berlin-based documentary filmmaker and visual artist. Her work deals with feminism, identity and exile. She also acts as a panelist and consultant on topics connected to MENA cinema with a focus on socio-political artistic work. Namer is a German Film Academy winner (2022) for her work as the producer and co-author of the documentary The Other Side of The River.