Ithaca College

 The second annual Palestinian Environmental Film Festival (PEFF) opens Monday, April 1, 7pm, in Textor 103 with two films addressing economic immobility, Doors to the Sea and Gaza: Tunnels to Nowhere.  Cornell graduate student Max Ajl will also provide a tribute to Vittorio Arrigoni, an Italian activist with the International Solidarity Movement, who was killed in Gaza on April 15, 2011.  Vittorio’s accompaniment of Gazan fishermen is documented in the Doors to the Sea.

 PEFF focuses on “(Im)mobility in Palestine” this year.  The films, which will be shown at Ithaca College and Cinemapolis April 1-7, examine how the continuing occupation of the West Bank and Gaza are creating unsustainable economic, social and physical environments.   The documentaries explore courageous efforts and innovative strategies to break the siege and protect Palestinian communities.   

 Festival director Ava Carmeli, an Ithaca College senior, explains, “This festival was designed to promote dialogue on campus and in the Ithaca community about the struggles facing the Palestinian people.”  

On the second night, April 2, 7pm, The War Around Us features Al-Jazeera journalists who were the only international reporters in Gaza during Operation Cast Lead.  The Park Center for Independent Media and Park School are co-sponsoring this screening, which will be in the Park Auditorium. 

Kingdom of Women: Ein El Hilweh, a multi-media documentary about the leadership of Palestinian women in the largest refugee camp in Lebanon, will be shown Wednesday, April 3, 7pm, in Textor 103. 

 On the weekend, April 6 and 7, Cinemapolis will screen two award-winning films: the Oscar-nominated Five Broken Cameras and feature film Habibi.  FLEFF co-sponsors Five Broken Cameras, which follows Palestinian director Emad Burnat’s documentation of the weekly peaceful protests in his West Bank village of Bil’in.  This film will be screened April 6, 4pm, and April 7, 7:20pm.  Jewish Studies and FLEFF co-sponsor Habibi, which retells the famous Sufi parable “Majnun and Layla,” as set in modern-day Gaza. 

For more information and a schedule of the festival please visit icpeff.wordpress.com. Individuals with disabilities requiring accommodations should contact Ava Carmeli at ava.carmeli@gmail.com. Please make requests for accommodations as soon as possible.