The UK’s largest festival of Arab cinema returns to HOME Manchester with films from Sudan, Palestine, Yemen and Jordan, plus special live events.

LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL + Q&A (19 June, 18:00)
Mohamed Jabaly | Norway, Palestine, Qatar | 2023 | 93’ | English, Norwegian, Arabic | Feature Documentary

The young Palestinian director Mohamed Jabaly is visiting a film festival in Tromsø in 2014, when the borders to Gaza close. He finds himself stuck in the arctic winter. Little does he know that it will be seven years before he can see his family again.

Inshallah A Boy (25 June, 18:00)
Amjad Al Rasheed | Jordan, France, KSA, Qatar | 2023 | 113’ | Arabic
Feature fiction

A powerful feature debut about survival and hope. After the sudden death of her husband, working mother Nawal has to fight for her inheritance in order to save her daughter and home in a society where having a son would be a game changer.

The Burdened (26 June, 18:00)
Amr Gamal | Yemen, Sudan, Saudi Arabia | 2023 | 91’ | Arabic
Feature fiction
UK Premiere

The Burdened offers a striking portrait of modern day Aden and a rare glimpse into the everyday realities of Yemeni families. Isra’a and Ahmed put all their efforts into offering a normal life and education to their three young children. When they find out that Isra’a is pregnant again, they have to make some difficult decisions.

Goodbye Julia + Q&A (27 June, 17:45)
Mohamed Kordofani | Sudan, Egypt, Germany, France, KSA, Sweden | 2023 | 120’ | Arabic

Set in Khartoum just before the secession of South Sudan, Mona, a married former singer from the north, seeks redemption for causing the death of a southern man by hiring his oblivious wife as her maid.

Bye Bye Tiberias (29 June, 18:00)
Lina Soualem | France, Palestine , Belgium, Qatar | 2023 | 82’ | French, Palestinian Arabic
Closed captions and Audio Description available
Feature documentary

In her early twenties, Hiam Abbass left her native Palestinian village to follow her dream of becoming an actress in Europe, leaving behind her mother, grandmother, and seven sisters.
Thirty years later, her filmmaker daughter Lina returns with her to the village and questions for the first time her mother’s bold choices, her chosen exile and the way the women in their family influenced both their lives.

Find more information and book tickets for Manchester screenings here.

SAFAR Film Festival, the UK’s largest festival of Arab cinema, screens in 9 UK cities from 18-30 June and is supported by the British Film Institute, awarding funds from the National Lottery, British Council, Bagri Foundation and Barjeel Art Foundation.
Explore the full programme on www.safarfilmfestival.co.uk