#latinarab3

BUENOS AIRES is going to be, yet again, the host of the 3rd annual LatinArab film festival.

It is a 10-day celebration of cultural, political, and human exchange. Organized by the NGO Cine Fértil, the festival is consolidating as a South-South cross-cultural think tank.

LatinArab will have a competitive selection of Arab feature films and another of Arab short films. At the same time there will be a competitive selection of Latin American films which somehow relate to the Arab world (a big percentage of Latin Americans have Arab ancestors so it is not so hard to imagine) called PANORAMA LatinArab. 

pan·o·ram·a

[pan-uh-ram-uh, -rah-muh]  noun

1.an unobstructed and wide view of an extensive area in all directions.

Origin: 1790-1800;  pan- + Greek  ( h ) órāma  view, sight, derivative of horân  tosee, look

Get it?

Apart from films, there will be extra activities such as round-table discussions, master classes by guest Arab film directors and conferences. Plus, this year will be the first to feature a “Country of Honour” week; such country will be Lebanon for its cinematographic tradition and quality.

You can follow the festival on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LatinArab

On twitter: @Cine_Fertil

Or just go to straight to the source and browse away!: http://cinefertil.org/cine-fertil/

LET’S CELEBRATE!

P.S: Loved the idea? You can collaborate! LatinArab has launched a crowd-funding campaign and you can do your bit. In return, you will get tickets for the screenings, posters, tee-shirts (which are just adorable!), and more. Just click here: http://idea.me/projects/10219/latinarab-film-festival

Córdoba Capital, Argentina

I took a very much needed weekend off work and travelled to the city of Córdoba, 700 kms from Buenos Aires.

It was a weekend full of wonderful activities and in a city that absolutely surprised me. I had been there 10 years ago and fallen in love with the Jesuit estancias; there has been a lot of work done in the city centre since then and it looks fantastic; not forgetting there are a lot of fun things to do.

Here’s a recap:

First we went to this beautiful Arab-style castle…

Montserrat castle in Unquillo (a few kms from the center); where we did some shooting for an upcoming spot for the next LatinArab Film Festival.

The next day we went to an asado and these were there to accompany the arab coffee… hhmmmm 🙂

Awamat – Crisp doughnut balls (Lebanon); courtesy of our host, Betty.

At night I went for a walk around the town…

Cathedral church of Córboda

Minidada; a bar/fair in the artsy part of town (a must).

This gorgeous barber chair decorates the entrance of a bar.

And finally, this is where I spent a lot of time:

Cineclub Hugo del Carril; a beautiful place for film lovers to find alternatives to mainstream cinema. Go check it out. (that’s me by the way)