LIFF - DOSSIER

@LIFFOFFICIAL WWW.LIFFOFFICIAL.COM

ABOUT US Founded by Gauthier-Charbel Raad and Di- neta Williams-Trigg, The Lebanese Indepen- dent Film Festival – LIFF is an independent festival born in Lebanon, the land of diver- sity. It emerges f rom the Mediterranean re- gion and aims to reach a global audience, in partnership with A Night of Misfit Films - Arizona, USA, the Lebanese mental health NGO “Embrace” and the Lebanese Film Fes- tival of France (FFLF) - Paris, France. A PLATFORM FOR INDEPENDENT ARTISTS The goal of LIFF is to establish Lebanon as a center for local and international f ilmmakers to share global perspectives, as well as independent thoughts to a large audience through film. LIFF’s main objective is to create a platform that supports independent artists, a community where artists can share their love and knowledge for Cinema and help one another. HEALTHY MIND, HEALTHY COMMUNITY The festival’s focus is to shed the light on subjects, which we think are essential to grow a healthy community, such as discovering your talent at a young age, f ind- ing where you truly belong, guiding adolescents in their journey to self-discovery, and most importantly, executing all of the above with a peaceful mind. We truly believe that a healthy mind equals a healthy lifestyle, which in conse- quence, forms a healthy community. This is why we are in collaboration for the second consecutive year with the Lebanese mental health NGO “Embrace”. Working side by side, our plan is to introduce the art world to the new genera- tions, while preparing them mentally to the struggles they might face in their journey to self-discovery. 1

TEAM Director of LIFF Gauthier-Charbel RAAD Gauthier-Charbel Raad is a French-Lebanese f ilmmaker and producer, living between Paris, Beirut and the Unit- ed States. He graduated with two Masters in Production and Film Directing. Gauthier has participated in several festivals with his documentaries and short films and has won numerous awards. In 2018, he created the Lebanese Independent Film Festival – LIFF in his homeland, the largest local and international film competition in Leb- anon, despite censorship. Gauthier is also developing the Canadian subsidiary of LIFF: CIFF and is a founding member of the Lebanese Film Festival of France (FFLF). Co-Director Of LIFF Dineta Williams-Triggs Dineta Williams-Trigg is an American Film, and Stage Actor. She is the owner, and proprietor of Full Figure Productions, whose mission is to positively affect every human soul that she makes contact with through her storytelling, and lots of hugs. She created her own film festival ‘A Night of Misf it Films’, currently its f ifth year, to provide other f ilmmakers the opportunity to screen unseen works. Dineta is extremely honored to be a part of The Lebanese Independent Film Festival and truly believes that as creatives, “Our Voices Can Change The World”. Festival Programmer Charelle Abdallah Cinema isn’t only for entertainment, it is a major educa- tional tool and if used right, it could enhance an entire society. This is why LIFF encourages artists to express themselves fearlessly, through their art. I hope the LIFF community will expand to a vast platform of indepen- dent, talented and humble artists, serving one another and Art. 2

Assistant Producer Léa Akiki Coming f rom a background of production and f ilmmak- ing, I constantly seek what is challenging, exciting and out of the ordinary. I believe my role as an artist is to pro- vide joy and inspiration to my community, and to push my fellow artists to take steps towards social progress. It is a pleasure for me to be part of LIFF’s family. I truly hope you enjoy it! Let the good times pop! Graphic designer Ani Mardirossian Greetings reader, ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) Growing up, I was always surrounded by coloring pen- cils, papers and other drawing/painting materials and I have been fortunate enough to turn my hobby into a job that I really like doing as an adult and keep my inner child happy at the same time. As a graphic designer, I find joy in creating visuals, working on UI/UX designs, or anything my field requires. I am proud to be working with the amazing LIFF family. Developper Roger Slewan Roger is a software developer with a demonstrated his- tory of working in the retail industry. High skills in man- agement, web developement and mobile development, holding a Bachelor’s degree focused in Computer Sci- ence f rom American University of Science and Technol- ogy, Lebanon. Currently working as a software engineer at Twistr and volunteering at LIFF to develop their mo- bile application. Editor Halim Kassouf Halim Rabih Kassouf is an Lebanese f ilmmaker, writer and editor. He works as an editor at LIFF and Startup minute. He is also known for his role as the Judge in a Lebanese theatre play “al-moufatech” Directed By “Mi- chel Hourani. 3

LIFF CONTRIBUTIONS The Lebanese Independent Film Festival - LIFF believes in the power of a commu- nity working together. Which is why LIFF has been continuously creating new op- portunities for artists to get involved in the independent scene, making them feel more engaged with their community. LIFF ON VIMEO - MAY 2020 The Lebanese Independent Film Festival - LIFF believes in the power of a commu- nity working together. Which is why LIFF has been continuously creating new op- portunities for artists to get involved in the independent scene, making them feel more engaged with their community. The independent scene in Lebanon struggles constantly, artists battle with f inancial diff icul- ties, and the inability to express themselves cre- atively. In times of the Covid-19 outbreak, the Lebanese independent artists suffered tremen- dous losses. With freelance jobs being canceled, artists doubted their ability to make ends meet. We, as a festival whose goal is to support the in- dependent community, launched a LIFF chan- nel in May 2020 on the Vimeo on Demand plat- form, to make the previously LIFF selected f ilms available online for our international audience to rent and watch. With this initiative, our aim is to help the inde- pendent artists profit from their own artistic work, making them feel that their hard work is paying off, literally. The channel streams, not only Lebanese, but also international films, such as “The Rite of Summer” (France), “Spot” (USA) and so on on. LIFF’s long term goal is to preserve the availability of indie short and feature films on a reachable platform, which will ensure a wider audience for the indie scene in Lebanon and worldwide. 4

FILM CRITICS ON LIFF - MAY 2020 As part of our mission, we encourage rising artists to embrace their talent, wheth- er it be writing, cinematography, photography etc, as well as provide them with a platform to do so f reely. In this context, the LIFF team created a space on the festival’s website and you- tube channel for aspiring film critics to publish their articles and videos, to reach a wider audience. In favor of increasing diversity in our community, we reached out to many young f ilm critics f rom different backgrounds and writing styles. All of whom had their own personal blog but struggled with reaching a wide audience. Francesco Bakhos aka 365 movies Lebanon, is one of the review writing critics. Reviewing summer blockbusters to Netflix originals, to indie un- derrated Lebanese and international films, Francesco, is an Au- diovisual student and according to his own words, is “a movie geek sharing his honest opinion on the latest and most beloved movies.” 5

Dima Saqfalhait, a Palestanian cinephile, holding an MA in Global Cinemas from SAOS, London, shares her passion for words and the visual image through her “Cine words” blog on her personal Instagram account and on the LIFF website. Dima has a unique writing style, where she focuses on words said in the film, hence the blog name “Cine words” and interprets their philosophical, emotional and artistic values, as well as their im- pact on the audience. 6

Elie Tayeh, a f ilm graduate f rom Al Kafaat University - Lebanon, is the newest member to join the critics team in LIFF. Known for his critic name Elycinema, Elie Tayeh writes his week- ly reviews in the Arabic language for our Arab audience, enrich- ing the diversity in our content. Tayeh reviews f ilms f rom different genres, discusses their plots and their impact on the audience. 7

While launching this initiative, we kept in mind the people who prefer watching a video recorded review, instead of reading a written one. We then launched with Ana Rolling and Sam The Critic a weekly video review on LIFF’s Youtube channel. Sam Lahham, a young Lebanese film student, whose passion for the moving image pushed him to create a weekly show on his IGTV entitled What The Flop. Speaking in the English language, Sam reviews different types of films; from documentaries, to Netflix originals, to all time classics, all while using his pseudonym “Sam The Critic”. By offering Sam a platform on our Youtube channel, we hope to help him reach a wider audience. 8

“Ana Rolling” is another weekly video-recorded review available on our Youtube channel, created by a group of three f ilm students, Nadine Chahine, Hazar Abu Shakra and Cynthia Mohsen. In addition to reviewing a variety of themes and genres in its week- ly videos, “Ana Rolling” also points out movie facts people didn’t know, as well as publish videos discussing the philosophy behind some films and series, all while speaking in the Lebanese dialect. 9

LIFF NATIONAL SHORT FILM ARCHIVE - 2020 In an attempt to preserve the Independent scene in Lebanon, LIFF is currently working on launching the first national archive for short movies, which is a film library on our website; through which we will be keeping track of the Lebanese short movies that come out year by year, allowing us to promote the Lebanese talents and preserve their work. Our goal is to expand the Film Archive to both short and feature independent Lebanese films. 10

CONTACT SHEET FOR FREELANCERS - 2021/2022 Another initiative LIFF is planning on launching in 2020, “Freelancers Contact Sheet”, which will increase the communication between f reelancers and will make it easier for independent artists to find each other and reach out. It is a platform on our website containing the names of freelancers, their contact information and samples of their works (portfolio, cv, vimeo link etc.) Most independent artists struggle to find a crew within their budget for their projects. The absence of a communication platform resulted in some artists putting their projects on hold and some paying way more than they can afford. This list will provide its user with a variety of artist names from different departments (cine- matographers, actors, writers, photographers, etc.) so he can choose the artists that most fit his vision and budget, then contact them. We are planning on launching this platform on our website to ensure easy com- munication between artists, which will give them a head start in their project. 11

SENIOR SHORT FILM COMPETITION - NOVEMBER 16, 2018 Many seniors have the fear of shooting their senior project then never getting the chance to screen it anywhere. The Lebanese Independent Film Festival – LIFF, organized a Senior Short Movie Competition, on November 16 at House of Music – HQ, to give the students a chance to screen their movies in front of an honorable jury; the movie critics and co-founders of Let’s Talk About Movies, Anis Tabet and Daniel Habib along with the Lebanese actress, Andree Nacouzi. We screened 6 short movies f rom different universities, and wrapped it up with 3 winners, who got selected into LIFF 2019 and A Night of Misfit Films 2020. 12

CONFERENCE - APRIL 16, 2019 LIFF’s mission is to reach out to aspiring independent Filmmakers, to guide them and support them in the Cinema industry in every way possible. Therefore, the LIFF team organised a conference, on the 16th of April, at The An- tonine University, with the presence of Muriel Aboulrous, cinematographer of the web documentary series “Zyara” and the Lebanese actress Christine Choueiry, discussing the following points: - What is Independent Cinema? - How to start a career as an independent artist? - How to make a movie Independently? - Where shall I start? - How to maintain success? 13

SCREENING IN LOS ANGELES - NOVEMBER 2017 In an attempt to launch the festival, LIFF’s first ever screening was held in Los An- geles - USA. In collaboration with Jacqueline Francisco, PR representative in LA, LIFF was able to screen 3 Lebanese short films in the United States. Through this event, we wanted to, first, launch our festival and second, to help the Lebanese f ilmmakers reach a wider audience and interact with international artists. 14

LIFF IN 2019 In our 2019 edition, we were honored by the trust peo- ple have given us, for we’ve reached over 900 submis- sions from over 87 countries worldwide, reminding us that Cinema wouldn’t be so special if it weren’t for its diversity. The festival took place on 12th 13th and 14th of September at “Station Beirut” - Beirut, Lebanon. With September 11th being the night of the opening cere- mony and the 15th, the night of the closing ceremony. The 2019 selections included movies selected in es- teemed film festivals: Toronto International Film Festi- val (TIFF), International Film Festival Rotterdam, Venice Film Festival (Mostra De Venice), Cannes Film Festival, Visions du Réel, Etats généraux du film documentaire, and many more. We screened around 180 independent projects, from all around the world including the pho- tography and the script category. The selected films discussed significant topics; from social issues and taboos, to mental health, to per- sonal conflicts. Our main goal in LIFF 2019 was to build a community and widen the platform of independent artists, by developing some sort of a networking event; to help artists reach each other and encourage them to keep creating together. As mentioned before, we find it absolutely necessary to keep supporting the young- er generations. After all, they are the adults of tomorrow. In this context, LIFF 2019 organized workshops, panels and discussions during the festival days. Such as: 12 Discussion with jury member and Leb- Screenwriting workshop with jury mem- anese award-winning independent bers and French-Lebanese screenwriter f ilmmaker Lucien Bourjeily on “Inde- and director Christophe Nassif on “The pendent Cinema & Society”. Dreadful Logline”. 15

34 “Acting 101” class with jury member and Panel with American jury member, Lebanese independent actor Wissam co-director of LIFF and director of our Fares. partner festival A Night of Misfit Films - Phoenix, Arizona discussing “Minorities in Cinema”. 5 Swedish f ilmmaker Anna-Klara, one of the directors of “3 Stolen Cameras”, dis- cusses the effects of censorship and its impact on society, with the honorary presence of Swedish Ambassador in Beirut Mr. Jörgen Lindström. 16

LIFF 2019 JURY MEMBERS Lebanese Actress Lebanese award-winning American actress, writer, CHRISTINE CHOUEIRI independent f ilmmaker producer and f ilmmaker LUCIEN BOURJEILY DINETA WILLIAMS-TRIGG Lebanese Actress Lebanese Actor Lebanese actor and TV host ANDRÉE NACOUZI WISSAM FARES CHADY RICHA Lebanese film critic French-Lebanese French-Lebanese ANIS TABET screenwriter and director festival programmer CHRISTOPHE NASSIF SARAH HAJJAR 17

MEDIA COVERAGE 2019 Our Media Partner : Al Araby Tv Press : Social Media : - L’Orient-Le Jour - Moviegoers - Al Akhbar - LiveLoveCinema - Asharq AL-awsat - Beirut.com - Bitar Magazine - EntaWayn.com Radio : - Al Modon - Radio Al Balad - Jbeil Daily News - MBS - Voix Du Liban Television : Direct Media Links : - MTV - TVC 2019 - OTV - Opening ceremony 2019 - NEW TV - Closing ceremony 2019 - Tele Liban - Sneak peak to LIFF 2019 - Alghad TV selected films 18

LAUNCHING COVERAGE - Anbaa Online - Youm7 PARTNERS 2019 - The Canadian Independent Film Festival - CIFF - Festival de Film Libanais en France 2020 - FFLF - A Night of Misfit Films Arizona – USA - The French Institute - Mental Health NGO - EMBRACE - Clockart Productions - Aliya Water - Beirut Online Taxi SPONSORS 2019 Coffee Sponsor : - Coffee Bun Food Sponsors : - Tabliyit Massaad Hotel : - Boutata - Smallville Hotel - Badaro Wine Sponsor : - Chateau Fakra 19

LIFF IN 2018 Our f irst edition took place at Metropolis – Centre Sof il, on July 12,13 and 14, we screened over 250 films from over 40 countries, local, international, feature, short, animation, documentary and fiction! It was a huge success, our opening night welcomed over 400 people including students, local and international f ilmmakers, actors, festival goers, movie critics, cinema enthusiasts, art directors etc. It was truly a place where talented people got together and celebrated independent cinema! 20

JURY The LIFF - 2018 jury, was a successful team, whose members worked together to- wards selecting the best f ilms. We’ve gathered well-known independent artists, local and international. Cinematographer Founder of Cine-Jam Lebanese performer, MURIEL ABOULROUS DENISE JABOUR researcher and instructor RITA BAROTTA Lebanese Actress Lebanese stand-up comedian Lebanese actor CHRISTINE CHOUEIRI and writer WISSAM SALIBA WISSAM KAMAL 21

Lebanese Actress American actress, writer, Lebanese blogger ELIAS EL ZAYEK producer and f ilmmaker GINO REIDY DINETA WILLIAMS-TRIGG Lebanese film critic Lebanese actor and TV host ANIS TABET CHADY RICHA 22

MEDIA COVERAGE We’ve received wide media attention f rom various newspapers, magazine, TV pro- grams and channels, such as: Press : Social Media : - Al Nahar Newspaper - LiveLoveCinema - Daily Star Lebanon - Lebtivity - L’Orient-Le Jour - Agenda Culturel 1 - Agenda Culturel 2 Television : Direct Media Links : - MTV - TVC 2018 - OTV - 2018 recap video - NEW TV - Sneak peak to LIFF 2018 - Tele Liban - Al Araby TV selected films PARTNERS 2018 SPONSORS 2018 - A Night of Misfit Films Arizona – USA - Patchi - Beirut Online Taxi - The storytellers (RPR) - Radio Delta - Jalousie Pastry & Catering - Empire Cinemas - An eye in the Sky - Metropolis - Haber Printing - Al Nahar - Saint Stephano Resort 23

CONTACT INFORMATION @LIFFOFFICIAL WWW.LIFFOFFICIAL.COM FilmFreeway Gauthier-Charbel RAAD Charelle Abdallah Director of LIFF Festival programmer +33 (0) 6 27 11 11 31 +961 76 376 193 director@liffoff icial.com info@liffoff icial.com Roger Selwan Ani Mardirossian Developer Graphic Designer +961 71 161 353 +961 71 870 857 [email protected] [email protected] Halim Kassouf Editor +961 71 889 624 [email protected] 24