Middle East Cinema Series Announces Spring 2019 Line-Up

From Turkey to Palestine, Iran to India, Nadi Cinema introduces viewers to the storytelling and vision of filmmakers across North Africa and the Middle East. All films — classics, cult favorites, recent hits, comedies, tragedies, political thrillers, social commentaries, and romances, in black-white and living color — are subtitled in English.

The series is hosted by Joel Gordon, professor in the Department of History at the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences.

All screenings are free and open to the public, and take place at 7 p.m. in the Hembree Auditorium, room 107E in the Agricultural Food and Life Science building (AFLS), just west of the Pat Walker Health Center on Maple Avenue.

Wednesday, Jan. 23 — Theeb/Wolf
Directed by Naji Abu Nowar, Jordan 2014

In this 'Bedouin western' set during the waning days of the Ottoman Empire, a young nomad boy secretly accompanies a British officer on a journey through the desert. A highly regarded — and awarded — co-production starring non-professional actors. (Arabic with English subtitles, 100 minutes)

Wednesday, Feb. 13 — Sheikh Jackson 
Directed by Amir Salama, Egypt 2017

In this 'endearingly offbeat' film, a young cleric has a crisis of faith — and identity — upon the death of his idol, Michael Jackson. (Arabic with English subtitles, 93 minutes)

Wednesday, March 13 — Kosh ba Kosh/Odd and Even
Directed by Bakhtyar Khudojnazarov, Tajikistan 1993

A young woman returns home from Russia to learn she has been gambled away by her father. A love story set against the background of civil war (Russian and Tajik with English subtitles, 95 minutes)

Wednesday, April 10 — Wolf and Sheep
Directed by Shahrbanoo Sadat, Afghanistan 2016

A phantasmagoric depiction of life in remote mountain region of Afghanistan, mixing folk beliefs — and a mythical Kashmir Wolf — with a nuanced ethnography. Directed and scripted by the youngest woman ever selected for the Cannes Festival. (Dari with English subtitles, 86 minutes)

Wednesday, May 1 — Le Challat de Tunis/The Blade of Tunis
Directed by Kaouther Ben Hania, Tunisia 2013

A 'playful,' 'audacious' and celebrated mockumentary based on the true story of a vigilante motorcyclist infamous for slashing the buttocks of women he deemed improperly dressed. (Arabic and French with English subtitles, 100 minutes)

All five film screenings are free and open to the public, and all are subtitled in English. Nadi Cinema is sponsored by the King Fahd Center for Middle East Studies in the Fulbright College.

For film synopses, trailers and more information, visit the Nadi Cinema webpage and follow the King Fahd Center on Facebook and Twitter.

About the King Fahd Center for Middle East Studies: 
The King Fahd Center for Middle East Studies is an academic and research unit in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Arkansas. An interdisciplinary and interdepartmental area studies center that offers diverse cultural, intellectual, and educational opportunities for the University of Arkansas community, the Center promotes research and teaching in interdisciplinary Middle East studies. The Center offers an undergraduate major in Middle East Studies through the Middle East Studies (MEST) Program and supports graduate studies in related departments with graduate assistantships, as well as summer language study, conference travel, and field research grants, and teaching and research by visiting scholars from affiliated universities and programs. More information about the King Fahd Center can be found at mest.uark.edu. For ongoing news, follow the Center on Facebook and Twitter.