Art on Screen 22: Shortcuts to Qatar

4455 University Drive,Houston TX 77204

30 April, 2022

Description

Join Public Art UHS for Art on Screen 22, featuring short films from Qatar presented in partnership with the Doha Film Institute. Art on Screen 22 features short films by some of the most compelling new voices in Arab cinema. This curated series includes seven stories by filmmakers Suzannah Mirghani, Nora Al Subaei, Dhabya Al Muhannadi, Abdulla Al-Janahi, A.J. Al-Thani, Nouf Al Sulaiti and Noor Alasswad. Films range from the personal to the global, incorporating narrative fiction, animation, and documentary genres. Before the show, enjoy refreshments for purchase and a guided tour of artworks by Muna Al-Bader, eL Seed, and others. Admission to the event and film screenings is free. 6:00pm | Doors 6:30pm | Public Art Tour 7:00pm | Films Parking + Transportation Parking: The Welcome Center Garage at 4400 University Drive, Houston, TX 77204 is the closest visitor parking to Student Center South. All visitor parking options on campus and hourly rates can be viewed at https://uh.edu/af-university-services/parking/parking-on-campus/visitor/. Public Transit: The Calhoun Road @ UH University Drive bus stop is one block from Student Center South. The UH South/University Oaks METRO stop is a 5-minute walk via Cougar Village Drive. Cycling: Bicycle racks and a BCycle station are located on the west side of Student Center South. Program Total run time: 97 min. Al Sit (2020) by Suzannah Mirghani | Narrative | 20 min. In a cotton-farming village in Sudan, 15-year-old Nafisa has a crush on Babakir, but her parents have arranged her marriage to Nadir, a young Sudanese businessman living abroad. Nafisa’s grandmother Al-Sit, the powerful village matriarch, has her own plans for Nafisa’s future. But can the young girl choose for herself? A compassionate story from Sudan about women—both powerless and powerful—exploring opposing ends of the social chain and how these roles might be changing in a modernizing world. Al Johara (2016) by Nora Al Subaei | Narrative | 26 min. Made a servant in her own home by her evil stepfamily, Al-Johara receives a wedding invitation from an old childhood friend. With the help of a neighbor, an eccentric, traditional old woman, Al-Johara might be able to attend her very first wedding—and finally be like her beautiful sisters. Maha’mel (2018) by Dhabya Al Muhannadi | Documentary | 6 min. Deep in the shipyards of Doha, amidst the whirring of table saws and heavy machinery, we enter the world of Dhow boat construction. Primarily still crafted by hand, with the metalwork relentlessly hammered and worked straight from the furnace, this silent meditative film gives us a glimpse into the precision engineering and expert craftsmanship that is involved in the creation of Qatar’s most iconic vessel. Hope (2020) by Abdulla Al-Janahi | Animation | 9 min. Aqua, the sea turtle, was born with the disability of having one fin smaller than the other. But he doesn’t let it get in the way of his life’s journey from nest to sea—one fraught with dangerous predators and tragic pollution. This endearingly humorous animation hides a more profound message of perseverance and the importance of being environmentally conscious. Black Veil (2019) by A.J. Al-Thani | Narrative | 17 min. Unfortunately, many women around the world are currently suffering under oppression and desperately dream of escaping it. ‘The Black Veil’ is the story of one such woman who puts her very life at risk in order to find her freedom. Helped by a reluctant but willing taxi driver, she escapes the clutches of her domineering household. However, her journey of emancipation is fraught with danger, and the potential of recapture lurks around every corner. Gubgub (2018) by Nouf Al Sulaiti | Narrative | 9 min. After getting her first catch of the day while crab-hunting with her father and brother, bright-eyed Jawaher shows it to her father. He dismisses her but goes on to praise her brother’s catch. Determined to win her father’s approval, Jawaher shrugs off his hurtful reaction and sets out to catch ten crabs. On her quest, she finds herself battling for a catch with Nawaf, a boy who shares her goal. Under the Lemon Tree (2019) by Noor Alasswad | Documentary | 10 min. In this short but powerfully introspective documentary, we spend a day under the shade of a lemon tree with a Palestinian woman named Khaldieh, who was abruptly exiled from her hometown of Tulkarem in 1967. Preparing herself a humble breakfast of za’atar and breathing in the smell of sage, she recreates her old life through an assemblage of simple elements. Though they may seem trivial, for many Palestinians they are among the only tangible pieces of their lost homeland that they still possess.