I Signed the Petition + A World Not Ours

Screening of I Signed the Petition and A World Not Ours with English subtitles in A4.

I Signed the Petition / Mahdi Fleifel / Germany, Switzerland, United Kingdom 2018 / 11 min. – Immediately after a Palestinian man signs an online petition, he is thrown into a panic-inducing spiral of self-doubt. Over the course of a conversation with an understanding friend, he analyses, deconstructs and interprets the meaning of his choice to publicly support the cultural boycott of Israel.

A World Not Ours / Mahdi Fleifel / United Kingdom, Lebanon, Denmark 2012 / 93 min. – An intimate, humorous, portrait of three generations of exile in the refugee camp of Ain el-Helweh, in southern Lebanon. Based on a wealth of personal recordings, family archives, and historical footage, the film is a sensitive, and illuminating study of belonging, friendship, and family. Filmed over more than 20 years by multiple generations of the same family, A World Not Ours is more than just a family portrait; it is an attempt to record what is being forgotten, and mark what should not be erased from collective memory.

Both films were directed by Mahdi Fleifel, a Danish-Palestinian film director who graduated in 2009 from the UK National Film & TV School. He is the co-founder of London-based production company Nakba FilmWorks which he runs alongside Irish producer Patrick Campbell. His debut feature, A World Not Ours (2012), premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and picked up over 30 awards, including the Peace Film Prize at the 2013 Berlinale and the Edinburgh, Yamagata and DOC:NYC Grand Jury Prizes. In 2016 he won the Silver Bear at the Berlinale with A Man Returned. His recent film, A Drowning Man, was selected for the official competition at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival and nominated for a BAFTA in 2018.