From the makers of GAZA (Sundance 2019), comes a new cinematic odyssey that
penetrates deep below the surface of Beirut, a still beautiful, yet deeply
troubled city on the brink of financial collapse.
In Sabra, one of Beirut’s toughest urban slums, sectarianism and violence is a
permanent way of life. Rabia, a 38-year-old hardworking but undocumented
Lebanese mother cannot afford to admit her chronically ill daughter to hospital,
leaving the life of her innocent child hanging in the balance.
In the Shadow of Beirut weaves four compelling storylines together in a searing
portrait of a people and a city struggling to survive amidst some of the most
difficult living conditions imaginable. In this failing state, it is the
vulnerable who suffer most.
Through intimate, character driven and cinematic storytelling, the stark reality
of life for the protagonists of the film is symbolic of the hundreds of
thousands of others who fight for survival in the most diverse country in the
Middle East, which has the highest per capita refugee numbers in the world. This
is a nation suffering one of the worst global financial meltdowns on record, a
country and a city that many now are trying desperately to flee.
Despite the inhumane conditions and enormous challenges, the areas’ inhabitants
possess unfathomable reserves of resilience and even hope, as they go about
their daily lives in the struggle to forge a brighter future for their families.
Las Leonas - Isabel Achával & Chiara Bondì
07december 2022
19:00 - 21:00
BOZAR - Palais des Beaux-Arts, Rue Ravensteinstraat 23, Bruxelles, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale 1000, Belgique
Description
*** English ***
On the outskirts of Rome, the women's eight-a-side soccer championship, the Las Leonas Trophy, is held. The film tells the story of the lives, dreams and difficulties of Vania, Melisa, Joan, Bea, Siham, Ana and Elvira (caregivers, maids or nannies), each with their own emigrant background and family history, but all united by the same passion for football.Isabel Achával began her career as an actress in film and television in Argentina, before making her first documentary for RTBF in 2008. In 2016, she moved to New York and directed the documentary Central Park.Chiara Bondì trained in screenwriting at the Scuola Nazionale di Cinema di Roma. In 2017, she directed the short film Monte Soratte, è sera, presented at the Rome Film Festival.The screening will be followed by a conversation with Isabel Achával and Chiara Bondì.
*** Français ***
Dans un quartier éloigné du centre de Rome se déroule le championnat de football à 8 féminin, le Trophée Las Léonas. Le film raconte la vie, les rêves et difficultés de Vania, Melisa, Joan, Bea, Siham, Ana, Elvira (soignantes, femmes de chambre ou nounous), chacune avec son parcours d'émigrante et son histoire familiale, mais toutes unies par une même passion pour le football.Isabel Achával a débuté sa carrière comme actrice pour le cinéma et la télévision en Argentine, avant de réaliser son premier documentaire pour le RTBF en 2008. En 2016, elle s’installe à New York et réalise le documentaire Central Park.Chiara Bondì s’est formée à l’écriture de scénario à la Scuola Nazionale di Cinema di Roma. En 2017, elle réalise le court métrage Monte Soratte, è sera, présenté au Festival de Rome.La projection sera suivie d'une conversation avec les co-réalisatrices Isabel Achával et Chiara Bondì.
*** Nederlands ***
In een wijk ver van het centrum van Rome vindt het voetbalkampioenschap 8x8 voor vrouwen plaats: de Las Léonas-trofee. De film vertelt over de levens, dromen en problemen van Vania, Melisa, Joan, Bea, Siham, Ana en Elvira. De verzorgsters, kamermeisjes en nanny's hebben elk hun eigen emigratieachtergrond en familiegeschiedenis. Hun passie voor voetbal hebben ze met elkaar gemeen.Isabel Achával begon haar carrière als actrice voor film en televisie in Argentinië. In 2008 draaide ze haar eerste documentaire voor de RTBF. In 2016 trok ze naar New York om er de documentaire Central Park te draaien.Chiara Bondì volgde een opleiding tot scenarioschrijfster aan de Scuola Nazionale di Cinema di Roma. In 2017 regisseerde ze de kortfilm Monte Soratte, è sera, die op het filmfestival van Rome werd voorgesteld.De film wordt gevolgd door een gesprek met de regisseuses Isabel Achával en Chiara Bondì.