Movies that matter: Film Festival inspires and transforms, gives insight into world issues

May 2, 2008
For Immediate Release

Amnesty International is proud to present its 4th Annual Film Festival, being held from May 21^st to May 25th in St. John’s. This year’s festival features documentaries on some of the most important issues facing the global community. The festival will be held at Memorial University’s Engineering Building, Room EN-2006 (On the website, http://munai.wordpress.com, click on “Schedule” for more).

The film festival is dedicated to showcasing some of the world’s best documentary films related to human rights. Through the art of film and its ability to bring the viewer in touch with sometimes harsh realities, the festival strives to expose new audiences to human rights abuses occurring around the world and to provide the St. John’s public with an opportunity to become involved in the global community by taking action against such abuses.

“Over the last couple of years, we have become increasingly aware of the responsibility each and everyone has in ensuring human rights abuses are not ignored, forgotten or not acted upon” said Remzi Cej, Film Festival Coordinator.

The 2008 festival program features ten films from around the globe that deal with human rights issues in countries such as India, Sudan, and Venezuela. This year’s festival will also screen two documentaries on the growing scarcity and commodification of water.

The Film Festival seeks to show the complexities of world conflicts, rather than classifying the problems as issues with simple, two-dimension solutions.

Often challenging and inspiring, these real life stories are compelling and powerful and they help us understand what it means to be a citizen of the world today. The festival celebrates the significant contributions made by filmmakers worldwide to the awareness and understanding of human rights issues. “This is an opportunity for the members of the community who read, hear and watch the news and want to do something about an issue. It begins with awareness, and we hope to provide our filmgoers with a good selection of some of the most pressing human rights issues, so they can begin to take action on behalf of fellow human beings,” said Cej.

Some of the films that will be featured include:

Heavy Metal in Baghdad: Playing heavy metal in a Muslim country has always been a difficult (if not impossible) proposition but after Saddam’s regime was toppled, there was a brief moment for the band in which real freedom seemed possible.That hope was quickly dashed as their country fell into a bloody insurgency. From 2003-2006, Iraq disintegrated around them while Acrassicauda struggled to stay together and stay alive, always refusing to let their heavy metal dreams die. Their story echoes the unspoken hopes of an entire generation of young Iraqis.

Burma’s Secret War: For most of the past 16 years the rightful leader of Burma, Aung San Suu Kyi, has been held under house arrest by a brutal military dictatorship that suppresses all opposition through a policy of rape, forced labour and systematic killings. This is a country unique in failing all five crucial tests by which the UN measures human rights, yet until now the world has all but ignored. This undercover documentary goes deep inside Burma, documenting political dissent and atrocities committed against the Karen people.

Radio Okapi: In recent times, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, radio, television and newspapers served as a means to disseminate messages of hatred, propaganda and slander. After the Rwandan genocide, a group of Swiss journalists set up the Hirondelle Foundation, which works for independent and professional media, notably in zones of conflict. Radio Okapi was set up as a radio for peace amidst war. It is currently the most listened to radio station in the DRC and operates in the country’s five official languages.

Faith without Fear: As a child, Irshad Manji was a religious Muslim girl who attended Islamic school. She was expelled for asking too many difficult questions – and she is still asking them. We join Manji as she travels the globe on a journey to reconcile her faith in Allah with her love of freedom. Inspired by the Qur’an, she calls on her fellow Muslims to stop blaming others for their ills and seeks to discover how Muslims can change for the 21st century. A panel discussion will take place after the film, with special guests from the local community.

For a complete schedule, please visit the Amnesty Film Festival site at http://munai.wordpress.com/ or contact a film festival coordinator at mun.amnesty@gmail.com.

NOTE: The documentary and feature films and videos presented in the festival are individual works of art and journalism, and have not been produced by Amnesty International. The perspectives or opinions presented in these films and videos are not necessarily those of Amnesty International, and Amnesty International has not necessarily researched or verified any specific facts presented in the films.

FILMS HAVE NOT BEEN RATED; SOME FILMS MAY NOT BE APPROPRIATE FOR VIEWERS YOUNGER THAN 17. DISCRETION IS ADVISED.