Tower Hamlets’ new community pop-up cinema kicks off on Friday night with Lebanese film Tramontane



The Hamlets Pop-Up Cinema installs itself at Oxford House in Bethnal Green, East London, for its debut screening this Friday, 6 October 2017. On show will be newly released Tramontane, an award-wining feature film set in Lebanon about a young blind singer who tries to discover who he really is after inadvertently learning he was given a fake identity as a child. The screening is open to everyone and is free of charge.

Friday’s movie starts at 7pm, with a short talk about the film and The Hamlets project at 6.45pm. Doors to the theatre at the Grade II listed Oxford House, which overlooks Weaver’s Fields and is a short walk from Bethnal Green tube station, open at 6pm. Capacity for the cinema is limited – just 120 seats – and while some tickets will be available at the door, advance registration will guarantee entry. You can book for free on Eventbrite.

Tramontane premiered in the International Critics' Week section of the 2016 Cannes Film Festival where it was awarded the Grand Rail d'Or Audience Award. Directed by Lebanese film-maker Vatche Boulghourjian, it stars blind actor and musician Barakat Jabbour, who plays Rabih, a young man from a small village in Lebanon. Rabih sings in a choir and edits Braille documents for a living, but his life unravels when he tries to apply for a passport to go on tour, only to be told by the authorities that his identification card, which he has carried his entire life, is a forgery. 

This intimate tale takes Rabih across rural Lebanon as he seeks out his true identity, meeting others whose web of lies about his background reflect the wider trauma of a nation still unable to come to terms with its long and brutal civil war. See the trailer here.


This stirring drama forms the first screening of The Hamlets Pop-Up Cinema. This innovative project, which also includes free training for local people on how to run their own community cinema, will travel to diverse venues in town centres across the borough, including those on Roman Road West, Watney Market, and Brick Lane throughout the autumn and winter. The pop-up screenings are open to local and non-borough residents alike, who will be able to watch a selection of movies from around the world that reflect the borough’s diversity.

The project is being managed by film charity Balik Arts and funded by Tower Hamlets Council as part of its Thriving High Streets programme.


To learn more about the project and future screenings, visit The Hamlets pop-up cinema blog, or follow us on Facebook and Twitter. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Going Turkish in Bethnal Green: UK film premiere of My Suburban Story, followed by dinner at Wood Mangal

Image
  Still from Benim Varoş Hikayem / My Suburban Story(2017) Later this month, our Tower Hamlets travelling community cinema pops-up at Oxford House in East London for a very special evening: the UK premiere of acclaimed mockumentary Benim Varoş Hikayem / My Suburban Story . The film was released in Turkey last year to rave reviews. It’s set in the back streets of Adana, southern Turkey, where director Yunus Ozan Korkut captures the essence of life through the eyes and tales of brilliant local characters living in Ceyhan, on the outskirts of the city. Korkut, who is also from Adana, draws on his circle – family, friends, neighbours and other local notables – for this rare and authentic insight into their untold and, to the outsider, invisible world. His exquisite palette of personalities include Culluk Yusuf the expert bird-thief, feminist former village headwoman Naime, Devran who loves to prop up the bar, and local strongman Cihangir Abi. Culluk Yusuf the e
Read more

Hidden Figures – an empowering true story for International Women’s Day

Image
Still from Hidden Figures (2016) starring (L-R):  Janelle Monae, Taraji P. Henson,  and Octavia Spencer  WOMEN-ONLY EVENT! For International Women’s Day, The Hamlets Pop-Up Cinema will feature a fabulous film from the United States. Released in 2016, Hidden Figures is the incredible yet little known true story about three women working at NASA, who served as the brains behind American astronaut John Glenn’s ground-breaking orbit around the Earth. Playing on 10 March, our Saturday afternoon movie has a top-draw cast: Katherine Jonson (Taraji P. Henson), Dorothy Vaughan (Octavia Spencer) and Mary Jackson (Janelle Monae) – three brilliant African-American women whose intellect not only enabled the successful launch into orbit of astronaut John Glenn, but also helped the USA move ahead of the Soviets in the all-important Space Race. The visionary trio crossed all gender and racial line and inspired generations. The film picked up multiple awards when it was released two
Read more

The Hamlets host Q&A with award-wining Bangladeshi filmmaker Tauquir Ahmed in Brick Lane

Image
Tauquir Ahmed speaking at Q&A hosted by The Hamlets at Masala Restaurant, Brick Lane, 01 Nov. 2017 On 1 st November, The Hamlets Pop-Up Cinema enjoyed a cultural scoop when it hosted Tauquir Ahmed – an acclaimed actor turned writer and director from Bangladesh. Twenty guests, including famous Bengali actress Jayasree Kabir and Rainbow Film Society founder Mostafa Kamal, attended a special dinner at Masala Restaurant in Brick Lane to hear the filmmaker talk candidly about his career and topical issues, including modern-day slave labour and the genocide against the Rohingya people in Myanmar. The evening started with an informal reception in the private room at Masala. Project leader and Balik Arts founder Yeşim Güzelpınar welcomed everyone and gave a brief explanation about The Hamlets, a community cinema initiative funded by Tower Hamlets Council as part of its Thriving High Streets programme. Guests at The Hamlets Q&A with Tauquir Ahmed enjoyed a warm and
Read more