EDINBURGH 13TH - 15TH MARCH 2009
The Palestinian Cultural Festival will introduce contemporary and traditional Palestinian culture to Scotland, and aims to create an educational and artistic dialogue between Palestine and Edinburgh. It will take place in the Roxy Art House with exhibitions and workshops and films being shown at The Filmhouse.
This is particularly timely with the extensive media coverage recently of Palestine, however we aim to try to paint a fuller picture of the country and people behind the headlines. Over the weekend the festival will celebrate Palestine’s vibrant and rich cultural heritage through different events.
Loads of events are happening throughout the city, from films to traditional cooking, music, theatre and panel discussions. The festival kicks off on Friday 13th with a panel discussion chaired by Nick Higgins featuring media workers from the UK and Middle East hosted by the Scottish Documentary Institute. It will focus on the challenges of making documentaries in conflict areas, looking at the recent Gaza coverage taken by the BBC, Al Jazeera and independent filmmakers. This will be followed by a screening of Paradise Now, Hany Abu-Assad’s Oscar nominated powerful portrayal of two young men’s desperation at the occupation. This will take place at the Filmhouse with a weekend of films from and relating to Palestine, including The Lemon Tree and A tale of Three Jewels by Michel Khleifi, the first ever feature film made in Gaza.
On Friday night El Funoon will be presenting Crossing the River Jordan, a powerful play focusing on border crossings. Then on Saturday, want to learn how to cook a traditional Palestinian dish with the help of Palestinian chefs? Come along to the food workshop at the Roxy Art House. This will be followed by an evening gala event fundraising for Project Hope in the Roxy Art House. Featuring Shadia Mansour (Palestinian Rapper - www.myspace.com/shadiamusic), GOL (Iranian/British Electronica - www.myspace.com/golmusic), the Dunya Ensemble (Middle Eastern Ensemble - www.myspace.com/dunyaensemble), Robin Harper MSP and more, this will be a chance to experience Palestinian culture (both traditional and contemporary) through great music, scrumptious food, dance performances and guest speakers - sure to be a highlight of the festival. On Sunday relax with a Palestinian circus performer giving children circus workshops and talking about the use of circus in conflict areas, followed by the festival closing evening with music, food and talks.
A permanent exhibition of art and photography from Palestine will accompany the events and there will be the chance to buy Palestinian goods at the Roxy Art House.
Tickets are available for the various events from Solidarity Goods (13 Guthrie St, Edinburgh) and the Filmhouse Cinema. To find out more about the festival and keep up to date with developments please visit the website www.palcf.org
EVENT LISTINGS:
EVERYDAY
An exhibition of photographs from young people in Palestine and professional photographers documenting daily life in Palestine; along with an exhibiton of Scottish/Palestinian fusion textiles will be present in Roxy Art House from 10:00 everyday. Admission Free.
FRIDAY 13TH MARCH
14:00: Scottish Documentary Institute master-class “Documenting Conflict - A Gaza Perspective”. Chaired by Nick Higgins. For reservations contact r.day@eca.ac.uk (Free.)
14:00: Filmhouse - Paradise Now (£3.50 /£2.00 conc.)
18:15: Filmhouse - Paradise Now (£6.30 /£4.70 conc)
20:30: Roxy Art House - El Funoun present “Crossing the River Jordan” Play (£5.00)
SATURDAY 14TH MARCH
12:00 Roxy Art House - Palestinian cookery workshop (Free)
15:10 Filmhouse – The Lemon Tree (£4.80 /£3.20 conc)
17:45 Filmhouse – The Lemon Tree (£6.30 /£4.70 conc)
18:00 Roxy Art House - Project Hope Benefit Night feat. Shadia Mansour, GOL, Dunya Ensemble and more! (£10.00)
SUNDAY 15TH MARCH
Roxy Art House - Circus Workshop (Free)
16:30 Roxy Art House – “Assirk Assaghir - Circus in Palestine ” Speaker Islam Gabi (Free)
13:00 Filmhouse - Tale of the three Jewels (£4.80 /£3.20 conc)
18:00 Roxy Art House Palestinian Dinner (RSVP to dan.gorman@eus.org.uk)
Notes:
1. The Palestinian Cultural Festival is a joint project between Project Hope (Nablus, Palestine) and Edinburgh University Settlement, a registered Scottish Charity (SCO16540). Palestinian Cultural Festival runs from 13-15 March: www.palcf.org.
2. Project Hope is a non-profit volunteer organisation whose goal is to provide a participatory, educational space for Palestinian youth and children. Committed to the principles of international humanitarian law and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, our aim is support children denied access to basic services by providing educational and recreational activities, medical and humanitarian relief and practical training that can empower them with hope and skills for the future.
3. El Funoun’s main activities involve running a cultural and language workshop. For the past five years El Funoun has performed in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August. During the year El Funoun run theatrical events, educational workshops, exhibitions and other festival activities such as dancing and sampling of Arabic food. El Funoun celebrates Muslim and Christian festivals with the Palestinian community. Everyone is welcome to take part.
PLEASE VISIT WWW.PALCF.ORG FOR MORE INFORMATION!