Documentary Cinema - Sarah Francis
This year's guest of the Documentary Cinema section is young Lebanese director Sarah Francis. The director's award-winning documentary, Birds of September, which was shot on the streets of Beirut, is included in the festival program. In the conversation that will be held after the screening of the film, Sarah Francis will share her perspective on documentary cinema, the production processes of her films and her experiences in festivals with the participants.
Biography
Sarah grew up in Beirut and studied at the Institut d’études scéniques, audiovisuelles et cinématographiques (IESAV) of the Saint Joseph University of Beirut. Her first film Birds of September (2013) premiered in the CPH:DOX main competition then screened in numerous festivals and museums like Art of the Real' Lincoln Center (NY), Stedelijk Museum (NL), Doxa (Ca), or DMZ Docs (South Korea) and received several awards. Her works also include short films and videos (e.g. 'Nawal's Rituals', produced by Ashkal Alwan, 2014). Her second feature film As Above so Below premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival in 2020 and is now being shown internationally. She is currently developing her third feature film.
Filmography
2013 Toyour Ayloul (Birds of September)
2014 Tukoos Nawal (Nawal's Rituals)
2016 All the Temporary, Quick Notes from Home
2020 Kama fissamaa’ kathalika ala al-ard (As Above so Below)
* All workshops and talks organized as part of the 19th Akbank Short Film Festival are free of charge. Participation is limited to side events of the festival.
* You can get your event participation card from Akbank Sanat's information desk one hour before the event.