The Middle East Film Festival (MEFF) returns from 10-16 January 2019 at Golden Village VivoCity with a specially-curated programme that celebrates the culturally-diverse cinemas of the region with films from Lebanon, Palestine, Egypt, Israel, Iran, Kazakhstan, and Turkey.
MEFF 2019 is presented by the Middle East Institute at the National University of Singapore and supported by the Singapore Film Society.
The festival opens with a Lebanese film, The Insult, directed by Ziad Doueiri.
Nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 2018, and winner of Best Actor at the prestigious Venice Film Festival in 2017, The Insult follows the media circus surrounding a Lebanese Christian and a Palestinian refugee after an insult is blown out of proportion, resulting in an explosive trial that roils society.
Audiences can also look forward to meeting Palestinian writer-director Annemarie Jacir, whose third feature, Wajib, won five awards at the highly-regarded Locarno International Film Festival. She will be present for two post-screening dialogue sessions during the festival.
Wajib, a nuanced and quietly powerful work, follows a father and his estranged son on a road trip to hand-deliver wedding invitations to their relatives and friends.
MEFF’s seven films, of which six are Singapore premieres, detail the lives of people living in the Middle East, tackling diverse issues related to society and family, from cultural traditions to ethnic identities.
Tickets can be bought at any Golden Village box office or
online at GV’s website.