Visiting faculty’s film creates a buzz on campus
Anna Fahr, instructor at LAU’s Department of Communication Arts, holds film screening.
A still from the film.
October 2014 Update: Transit Game will be screened at the Beirut International Film Festival, and then on to screen in competition in several international festivals in Europe, the USA and Canada, and will be broadcast on “Cinema Badila” on BBC Arabic.
Gulbenkian Theatre was alive with excitement on March 5 in anticipation of the private and exclusive screening of Transit Game, a short film created by Anna Fahr, a visiting instructor in film at LAU’s Department of Communication Arts.
Transit Game is a short narrative film that tells the story of two Palestinian children who cross paths with a Syrian refugee while peddling newspapers along the side of a road. The Syrian man has just escaped from the war and is looking for a place to live for his family. The visually compelling film provides a glimpse into the commonality of their experiences and the struggles they face as refugees with no home to return to and no country to call home.
“This film was inspired by my interest in cultural identity and questions of what it means to live in exile,” says Fahr.
Fahr has been at LAU since September 2012 and she has had a team of talented students come on board to help her with the film as crew members, taking on various roles like second assistant AD, line producer assistant and script supervisor, among others.
“The students were involved in both the pre-production and production and were on set during the three days that we spent shooting in the North. It was a great experience for everyone involved and I’m happy to have had the opportunity to involve LAU students in the project, which will hopefully open doors for them and lead to other projects in the future,” she says.
The film was produced independently in collaboration with Placeless Films and Ginger Beirut Productions. LAU’s School of Arts and Sciences supported the project by providing a Faculty Research and Development Grant, which helped cover some production expenses.
What’s next for the young filmmaker? “I’m hoping to take the film and screen it in festivals in the months ahead.”
Anna Fahr’s research and creative interests include cultural identity, women in film, and transnational art and media practices. In addition to teaching, Fahr is an independent producer/director/editor who has collaborated with New York-based film companies Marakesh Films and Zeila Films on a number of projects, including the five-part documentary web series, RHV: Reproductive Health Vouchers, funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and produced by Gobee Group.
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