By Anand Holla


For all his incisive cinematic commentary on life in Palestine, Elia Suleiman has maintained that his idea has been to capture the bigger picture – that of all conflicts and all regressions, treating the local as universal.
Perhaps best known for his 2002 film, Divine Intervention – a surreal comedy and modern tragedy about the Israeli occupation of Palestine that won the jury prize at Cannes – Suleiman has approached the difficult subject of the dilemma of being an Arab in Israel with clever humour in films like Chronicle of a Disappearance – his first feature in 1996, which won him the Best First Film prize at the Venice Film Festival.
The Nazareth-born Palestinian filmmaker’s cinematic style is often compared to that of Jacques Tati and Buster Keaton for its deft handling of absurdist comedy, and his filmography over the years shows that the auteur hasn’t lost his touch.
As a prelude to the inaugural edition of the Qumra Festival, the Doha Film Institute is screening three of Suleiman’s films, which highlight his remarkable career.
Qatar’s film enthusiasts can rejoice as Suleiman – who is also DFI’s Artistic Adviser – will be present at the screenings, and will engage with the audience by answering questions and discussing his craft. There is also a private masterclass with the much-acclaimed director-actor on Saturday at 4pm, but it is only by invitation.
Here’s a quick synopsis, courtesy DFI, of the three gems which will be screened at the Museum of Islamic Art Auditorium this weekend:
Chronicle of a Disappearance (1996): In an investigation of the twilight zone between narrative, history and autobiography, the 88-minute film transgresses the boundaries of many genres. After living in New York for many years, Suleiman returned to Palestine for this film. He used his privileged position as half-insider and half-outsider to analyse how much the Arab population of Palestine is losing its national identity.
Through his alter-ego Suleiman’s quasi-aimless roaming, we become acquainted with his extended circle of family and friends, witnessing characters who lead a marginal existence in an occasionally surreal reality. Friday, 4pm.
Divine Intervention (2002): In Nazareth, under the guise of banal normalcy, the town embraces folly. Under pressure due to his failing business, a man takes matters into his own hands and tries to break a chain reaction of petty feuds. He breaks down himself. The man is Suleiman’s father.
A love story takes place between a Palestinian man living in Jerusalem and a Palestinian woman from Ramallah. The man – Suleiman – shifts between his ailing father and his love life, trying to keep both alive. Because of the political situation, the woman’s freedom of movement ends at the Israeli army checkpoint between the two cities. As they are barred from crossing the border, the lovers’ intimate encounters take place on a deserted lot right beside the checkpoint. They are unable to exempt reality from occupation, unable to preserve their intimacy in the face of a siege. Friday, 7pm.
The Time that Remains (2009): A semi-autobiographical film, in four episodes, this one’s about Suleiman’s family, from 1948 until recent times. It’s inspired by his father’s private diaries, starting from when he was a resistance fighter in 1948, and by his mother’s letters to family members who were forced to leave the country.
“Combined with my intimate memories of them and with them,” says Suleiman, “the film attempts to portray the daily life of those Palestinians who remained and were labelled ‘Israeli-Arabs, living as a minority in their own homeland.” Saturday, 7pm