Thursday June 13, 5:30-6:30pm: Gallery Tour followed by light food & refreshments - 6:30- 8:00pm: Film screening and recorded Q&A with film director - in person at MEI Art Gallery, 1763 N St, NW, Washington DC
Film Screening & recorded Q & A with Director Lena Soualem: “Bye Bye Tiberias,” - a documentary about 4 generations of Palestinian Women
The Middle East Institute's Arts & Culture Center in partnership with The Museum of the Palestinian People is pleased to present a screening of the acclaimed documentary BYE BYE TIBERIAS (2023) exploring the choices made by Emmy-nominated actress Hiam Abbas (Succession, Ramy, Blade Runner 2049) to leave behind her Palestinian village to pursue an acting career in Europe.
Directed by Abbas's daughter, Lina Soualem, the deeply personal documentary follows Abbas back to her village, where her daughter questions her chosen exile and the way the women in their family influenced their lives. Combining current and family footage with historical archives, the film portrays four generations of women who keep their legacy alive through the strength of their bonds, despite dispossession, exile and heartbreak.
The film screening is part of programming linked to MEI's current photo exhibition Louder Than Hearts, curated by Rania Matar, featuring the work of ten women photographers from the Arab World and Iran who capture the resilience and strength of women in the region. For more information on the exhibition please click here.
BYE BYE TIBERIAS (2023, 82 min- Arabic-French, English subtitles) was Palestine’s entry for Best International Feature in the 2024 Academy Awards. It premiered at the Venice Film Festival and has won several prizes.
About The Film Director
LINA SOUALEM is a French-Palestinian-Algerian filmmaker and actress born and is based in Paris. After completing her studies in history and political science at La Sorbonne University, she worked as a programmer for the International Human Rights Film Festival in Buenos Aires. Soualem's debut feature documentary, Their Algeria, premiered at the Visions du Réel International Film Festival in 2020. It won the First Film Award at the CINEMED Montpellier International Festival of Mediterranean Film, the Best Arab Documentary Award at the El Gouna Film Festival, and the Best Documentary Award at the Cinemania Film Festival in 2021, along with a dozen other accolades. Lina Soualem has also acted in three feature films, directed by Hafsia Herzi, Hiam Abbass, and Rayhana. She is currently engaged in writing for fiction, documentaries, and TV series.
"Created by a female filmmaker about the women in her family, BYE BYE TIBERIAS makes no bones about its quiet celebration and gratitude for women's strength... Soualem’s documentary puts a human lens on what can be soulless and cold headlines about the Israel-Palestine conflict." - Media Diversity