Sunday, 27 September
REEF Encounters will host the screening of six short films created under the Land is Woman Program. Written and co-created by women participants from Akkar, Tripoli and Hermel, including women from host, displaced and refugee communities under the guidance and training of professional filmmakers. The films highlight women’s diverse roles in caring for the land, advancing sustainability and taking leadership in their own ways and communities.
Films:
Not Just a Tree (Roukaya Charaf Al-Dein, Rim Al Amine, and Nour Diab)
The film follows three women from Bilad Al Sham, who share a deep connection to the olive tree. Through their intertwined stories and experiences, the tree becomes more than a mere element of nature: it emerges as a witness to history, a keeper of memory, and a living site of resistance.
Raghdaa (Doha Ali and Alaa Shkhaidem)
The film follows Raghdaa between her orchard and her home, tracing her determination to keep planting despite the devastating loss of four of her children since 1994. Her story raises a profound human question: How does one continue to give when loss keeps returning? A story of resilience that can only be understood through love.
Zaher El Rumman (Rima Farah, Randa Matar, and Helena Makhoul)
Set in the village of Terbol, the film follows three women alongside Om Waleed through the wheat-boiling season, interwoven with the shadow-theatre tale of Zahr El Remman, a woman denied her inheritance. Through wheat and memory, the film explores women’s enduring connection to the land despite displacement and injustice.
Fadwa for the Land (Marina Awad)
In Lebanon’s Akkar Plain, Fadwa Zehrman turns hardship into a life rooted in the land. Walking on crutches and facing the challenges of a male-dominated society, she works her land, builds a livelihood, and supports the women of her village. Fadwa… For the Land is a story of strength, dignity, and a woman who, against all odds, turned loss into a source of growth and giving.
Your Grandma is Calling (Fadwa Annous)
As Fadwa learns to make maamoul with her grandmother, she uncovers the memories, sacrifices, and wounds passed down through generations of women. Through this intimate ritual, she begins to question what she chooses to carry with her into the future.
Against the Tide (Batoul Dandash)
Batoul returns to the Al-Assi River in Hermel, a place where she feels a deep sense of belonging, and to her father’s nursery, where he teaches her how to plant. A personal journey through the river, her father, and the land, exploring the meaning of roots and belonging.ather, and the land, exploring the meaning of roots and belonging.
