A Community Responds: 3 Films On the Global Refugee Crisis

When:
Thursday, Feb 02, 2017 7:00p -
9:00p
Repeats weekly

Where:
West Newton Cinema
1296 Washington Street
West Newton, MA 02465

EventScheduled OfflineEventAttendanceMode

Admission:
$11 general admission, $9 seniors & students. February 16 event is free.

Categories:
Film, Lectures & Conferences, Social Good

Event website:
http://www.belmontworldfilm.org

Belmont Public Library, Belmont World Film, Beth El Temple Center, and First Church of Belmont Unitarian Universalist present a series of three award-winning documentaries beginning at 7:00 PM, including SONITA on February 2 and AFTER SPRING on February 9 at the West Newton Cinema (1296 Washington Street) and ALL OF ME on February 16 at the Belmont Public Library (336 Concord Avenue), followed by discussions. Proceeds benefit the International Institute of New England, which provides information on resources to refugees and immigrants, and the Refugee & Immigrant Assistance Center (RIAC), which promotes community education, refugee resettlement, post resettlement support services, counseling services and socio-economic development in Massachusetts refugee and immigrant communities.


Winner of the Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival, SONITA tells the story of an 18 year old Afghan girl living as a refugee in a shelter in Tehran, who dreams of being a famous rapper. In Iran she gets counseling for the traumas she has suffered and guidance in shaping her future. But women aren't allowed to sing in Iran and her family has a very different future planned for her: as a bride she's worth $9,000. In an unconventional twist, Director Rokhsareh Ghaem Maghami becomes personally involved in helping Sonita fulfill her dream. The evening also features the short film Refugee Blues by Stephan Bookas, which charts a day in 'the jungle', the recently destroyed refugee camp outside Calais in France. Nano Raies, a second year voice student at the Berklee College of Music and originally from Homs, Syria, will speak after the film.


Former Daily Show host Jon Stewart executive produced AFTER SPRING, directed by Ellen Martinez, which follows two Syrian refugee families in transition, as well as the aid workers fighting to keep the Jordan-based Zaatari Refugee Camp, the largest camp for Syrian refugees, running. With no end in sight for the conflict or the refugee crisis, everyone must decide if they can rebuild their lives in a place that was never meant to be permanent. It will be screened with the short film People of Nowhere by Lior Sperando, which documents the volunteers working to save Syrian immigrants trying to make it to the EU. Omar Salem, chairman of the Karam Foundation that provides emergency aid to the people of Eastern Aleppo, will lead the post-film discussion.


ALL OF ME by first-time Mexican filmmaker Arturo González Villaseñor chronicles a group of women who stand by the train tracks near the Mexican town of La Patrona. Calling themselves "Las Patronas," they wait for a freight train full of illegal Latin American immigrants—on a perilous journey in pursuit of the dream of a better life in the USA—to pass by. They throw them water bottles and packages of food they cooked themselves and never miss a single train. Although poor themselves, the women understand the suffering of others. Representatives from the International Institute of New England and the Refugee & Immigrant Assistance Center will speak after the film.


Tickets to the screenings at the West Newton Cinema on February 2 and 9 are available in advance at https://www.ticketor.co/belmontworldfilm?cat=RefugeeCrisis or at the door beginning at 6:30 PM. Admission to the Belmont Public Library screening on February 16 is free, but seats must be reserved through the site listed (arrive early as seating is not guaranteed).


Other community partners include Belmont Against Racism, Belmont Religious Council, Human Rights Commission, and Mosesian Center for the Arts. For more information call 617-484-3980.

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02/02/2017 19:00:00 02/02/2017 21:00:00 America/New_York A Community Responds: 3 Films On the Global Refugee Crisis Belmont Public Library, Belmont World Film, Beth El Temple Center, and First Church of Belmont Unitarian Universalist present a series of three award-winning documentaries beginning at 7:00 PM, inc...

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