Free screening but donations encouraged!
Elia Suleiman, Palestine, 1996, 88 min
After spending more than a decade in New York, Palestinian director Elia Suleiman returned to his homeland in 1992 to make his first feature film. Expectations of what he could do were high: he left the U.S. with an ITVS grant to develop his project and soon won a prize at Locarno for his script. With further backing from a French co-producer, Suleiman was able to complete his film just in time to win the award for best first feature at the 1996 Venice Film Festival.
Chronicle of a Disappearance is an extended meditation of the contemporary life of Palestinians in “the Holy Land.” Elders recount absurdly funny tales and jokes; Russian emigres talk about tourism’s ravaging of the country; tourists pontificate about Israeli politics; and a young Palestinian actress struggles to find an apartment, while Suleiman, himself a character, tries to figure out what kind of film he should make. Suleiman weaves these narratives together with extraordinary irony and grace.