For five years, and in the same time of the year, we’ve been coming,
For five years, we’ve been drawing an arch that becomes a door for people to walk beneath into a city of vast emotions and feelings that cannot be limited by hatred or ugliness.
Such a city, built by the hearts of its people with a different style; the foundations of this city, are of ideas, its pillars are of passion and its high ceiling is made of knowledge, a city of a different style, that is woven mostly like a piece of laces cloth, brocaded by a woman in love, or a cloud pillow, that a child sleeps on, or a jacket of an old man protecting him from the cold.
Such a city is not a puzzle; such a city can only be the cinema. Cinema is the only city that we can feel its features by our hearts. Such a city is the one that takes us to all cities.
For five years, we’ve been building the words to tell about every new feature of this city, and about any dress and jewelry it wears to look better. This city never changes its dress, as it is woven from joy and delight, with a rose planted behind its ears and the Palestinian sunbird on its shoulder, the bird that the city took as its symbol. This bird, decorated with the colors of the spectrum, was known by the world here in this land, and has taken this land’s name, then flew to all parts of this world, just like us, we fly and fly , but always return to our first place.
So, after this bird has given its name to this festival city, it came to us together with cities that have become movies, movies that have become parts of these cities or of the bird, or part of its hart, or of the city’s one. Aren’t the movies parts of the hearts of their makers? Telling the story of what they have experienced, told or felt, sensed and tried, so that these stories be owned by people exchanging its nostalgia and smiles with theirs.
Al-Kasaba Letter