Arab Film Festival Berlin holds its ground amid Gaza backlash

Fakhry also criticised the Berlinale's professed identity as a festival shaped by political engagement: "Volodymyr Zelensky was invited, yet when it came to Palestine, the festival suddenly ceased to be political."

The Berlinale crisis earlier this year came close to costing festival director Tricia Tuttle her position, until more than 700 directors, actors, and cinema professionals signed an open letter in support of her. "What happened damaged the reputation of both the festival and the country," says Fakhry, who hails from Lebanon's Beqaa Valley. "The director remained, but under conditions, and she no longer enjoys full freedom of action. Had I been in her place, I would have resigned. Today, no one is able to take a courageous stand and say that what the German government is doing is unacceptable, that this war is genocide, and that the shipment of weapons must stop. No one dares, for fear of meeting the same fate, especially after the Berlinale reactions. Even silence may not save you from being cast aside."

The 17th edition of ALFILM, which began on 22 April and runs until 28 April, features around 60 feature films, documentaries, and short films from across the Arab world. For the third consecutive year, it opens with a Palestinian film, Palestine 36, by the Palestinian director Annemarie Jacir. 

The choice is no coincidence. "Palestine lies at the root of the conflicts our region continues to endure," says Fakhry. "Germany's position on Palestine has not changed, even after the war on Gaza, so we bring the Palestinian narrative to the fore in order to affirm its presence."

ALFILM's orgins

The idea for ALFILM was first conceived in 2009 by Fadi Abed Al Nour and Essam Haddad, Palestinian and Lebanese respectively. It began as a modest platform introducing German audiences to Arab cinema before gradually growing into an annual event that brings together audiences with an interest in Arab film and culture. Fakhry, who moved to Berlin in 2008, joined the festival in 2013.

"Our work was voluntary, and our aim was to speak, as Arabs, about ourselves," remembers Fakhry of those early years. Initially, the festival's audience was largely European. That began to change with the arrival of Syrian refugees in 2015, a moment that marked a turning point for Arab communities in Germany. "Our role expanded, and our audience became more Arab."

A second turning point came in 2020, when the festival received its first funding from the city of Berlin. That same year, Fakhry became its artistic director, and in 2022 she assumed its presidency. Now, 17 years after its founding, she says the festival has entered a new phase: "A great deal has changed. We now have more films, and the funding has given us greater scope to develop the programme."

This year's opening film, Palestine 36, addresses a subject that is rarely seen on screen, says Fakhry. The Palestinian revolt of 1936. "Everyone tells the story of the conflict from the Nakba onwards, yet very few speak of what came before the Nakba, the period of British colonial rule, during which the Zionist occupation took root and Palestinian institutions were dismantled," she explains. "The first movements of resistance emerged in 1936. For us, this was therefore a vital subject to bring to light, even for us as Arabs, since the story so often begins with the Nakba."

Sudan in focus

This year, however, the festival's spotlight section is devoted to the war in Sudan, which entered its fourth year this month. For the first time, the festival invited the Sudanese artist Talal Afifi to curate the section, which includes films such as The Station, Khasha, Cotton Queen, and Khartoum. It also features historical works from the 1970s and 1980s, such as Recovered Films: Cinema of the Vanguard, an art exhibition, and a discussion session on archives and the role of European institutions in preserving them.

"Sudan has been an urgent subject for some time, and sadly no one is talking about it. It remains marginalised, whether in Arab media or European media," says Fakhry. "We felt it was essential to work with a Sudanese artist in shaping this programme, since we ourselves are not from Sudan. That is why Afifi was chosen."

There is also a strong Saudi presence at the festival, including screenings of Hobal, which is being shown in Berlin for the first time. "Hobal is an extraordinary film in terms of its production, its desert cinematography, and its narrative power. It is set in the 1990s, during the Gulf War, among a tribe in the desert, with its customs, the hardships woven into those customs, and the place of women within that world."

The festival's management, explains Fakhry, has always sought to screen films that "engage with issues on a level deeper than mere entertainment, and Hobal reaches for that deeper register. That is what set it apart for us." She also points to the Night Courier, which was screened two years ago. "There is a clear movement in Saudi cinema, sustained by strong state support, and that is something we encourage. Each year, we try to screen a film from the Gulf, while also ensuring representation from other countries such as Iraq and Jordan. Our aim has always been to present Arab cinema in all its variety and richness."

This year's edition also pays tribute to a number of influential figures in Arab cinema, including the Palestinian actor Mohammad Bakri and the Egyptian director Daoud Abdel Sayed, both of whom died in December last year. The festival is also marking the centenary of Egyptian director Youssef Chahine.

There will be screenings of Ameer Fakher Eldin's The Stranger, featuring a deeply moving performance by Mohammad Bakri, as well as Abdel Sayed's Land of Dreams and Chahine's Adieu Bonaparte. Also included is Sites of a Family Film, in which filmmaker Viola Shafik explores her relationship with her former husband, production designer Onsi Abou Seif, their son Ani, who lives in Germany, and the bond she and Onsi share through Arab cinema. The film will be screened in the presence of all three, and Abou Seif will deliver a masterclass on art direction.

"Onsi Abou Seif is the connecting thread," says Fakhry. "He worked on most of Daoud Abdel Sayed's films, as well as with Youssef Chahine, and he was the architect of the visual worlds of some of the most important works in the history of Egyptian cinema."