The University opened the Pioneers Woman Film Festival, a cooperative project between Alkasaba Cinematique and Theatre and the Public Relations Department of An-Najah National University. The goal behind organizing this festival is to show the struggle of Arab women who did their utmost to face difficulties and obstacles and looked for their future in spite of the restrictions imposed by a conservative society.
To mention just some of the films, The Legend of Rose AL-Yousef presented a series of stories narrated for the very first time by a number of contemporary personalities. Based at the end of the 19th century it tells the story of a twelve year-old girl that slips out of a boat docked in Alexandria harbor fleeing towards an unknown destiny awaiting her in a remote part of the world. The story shows her rise from her humble beginnings to her distinguished position in the history of art, culture, press and politics in Egypt.
The second film, called Women who Loved Cinema, is about six strong-willed women whose adventurous streak changed the face of film industry in early twentieth century Egypt, a time when the country was, despite the liberal ripples, still steeped in conservative tradition. The film reflects how these women, different as they were in class and social background broke taboos and dismissed conventional wisdom to fulfill their overpowering passion for filmmaking.
The third film is the Lady of the Palace by Samir Habachi. The director presents a time when the oriental woman indulged herself behind secluded walls, deprived of her basic rights. Nazira Jumblat presided in palaces and social events and occupied a leading position in a male dominated, conservative and closed religious society. She played a significant role in Lebanese politics during an important period of Lebanese history.
Another film, Mustapha Hasnaoui’s When a Woman Sings, attempts to examine the issue of women and modernization, women and body, women and power through songs and segments from the lives of several singers such as Munira el Mahdeya or Om Kulthoum, seeking to link and compare the past with the present.
Women beyond borders, by Jean Chamoun, presents two generations of pioneering Palestinian women. Through the ex-prisoner Kifah Afifi and her experience in Khiam Prison in South Lebanon, we discover the famous poet Fadwa Tukan, her experience in the prison of her family and Samiha Khalil, who incessantly fought for justice, peace and human rights.
The showing of these films is an attempt to raise public awareness of women’s rights in the Palestinian and the Arab community, serving also as a window for university students to see the cultural development of women and their struggle for rights.