Philippine Sneak Preview: Bledi, Mon Pays Est Ici

PHILIPPINE SNEAK PREVIEW OF BLEDI, MON PAYS EST ICI
A DOCUMENTARY ON THE PLIGHT OF REFUGEES, MUSLIMS IN CANADA


Monday, 15 January, 5:30-7:00 PM
FOREIGN FILM IN FOCUS
Malcolm Guy and Eylem Kaftan’s BLEDI, THIS IS OUR HOME

(Canada/Documentary /2006/53 minutes/Video/ v.o. French,
s.t. Eng)
Co-director Malcolm Guy will attend the screening

Fleeing their war-torn homeland, forty thousand
Algerians come to Montreal, Quebec in the 1990's. Many
are refused refugee status and are not allowed to
study or work normally. Years go by, children are born
and Canada becomes home.?Then comes 911. Deportations
begin.?The "non-status Algerians" decide to fight to
stay in Canada. Bledi, This is Our Home follows some
of the key actors in a roller-coaster of direct
actions, lobbying efforts, victories and setbacks. For
the first time in Canadian history, the tradition of
sanctuary is violated when Mohamed Cherfi is dragged
out of a Quebec City church... then tossed in a U.S.
jail.?Dramatic and personal, Bledi, This is Our Home
raises crucial questions about Canada's refugee
policies and its treatment of Muslims and Arabs.

Profile of Filmmakers

Malcolm Guy is a Montreal-based director/producer of
documentaries and fiction films and is President and
co-founder of Productions Multi-Monde. In 2004, he
directed two feature-length documentaries, Rebel Music
Americas (avec Marie Boti) and Turbulent Waters (with
Michelle Smith). He has also directed Pressure Point:
Inside the Montreal Blockade (1999) (co-directed with
Magnus Isacsson and Anna Paskal – Best documentary,
L'Association québecoise des critiques de cinéma), The
Suit War en 1997 et La montagne d'or (avec William
Ging Wee Dere) en 1993.?Malcolm has produced Cherry
Fruitbread (2003) (audience prize, Best Canadian short
film, Festival des films du monde), When Strangers
Reunite (1999), Modern Heroes Modern Slaves (1997)
(Best documentary, Canadian Association of
Journalists) , and the feature film L'Oreille d'un
sourd (1996). Malcolm is also active in the
independent film community and sits on a number of
Boards of Directors.

Eylem Kaftan was born in Turkey. Eylem completed a
Masters degree in Cinema at York University in 2002,
where she worked as a teaching assistant and wrote her
thesis on the identity crisis in post-1980 Turkish
cinema. Her first documentary, Faultlines,
investigates the aftermath of the earthquake which hit
Turkey in 1999. It won Best Short Film and the Jury
Prize at the Planet Indie Film Festival in Toronto.
Eylem then wrote and directed Vendetta Song (2005)
produced with DLI Productions in co-production with
the National Film Board of Canada. This gripping hour
long documentary about her personal journey into the
honor-killing of her aunt in a small Kurdish village
in Turkey was broadcast on Vision TV and Télé-Québec
and has received several awards including CIDA Prize
for Best Canadian Documentary on International
Development at Hot Docs; the Quebec Film Critics
Association Award for Best Medium Length Documentary;
Best Documentary, Calgary International festival; and
Best Documentary, Female Eye Film Festival. Eylem has
contributed to several Canadian documentaries on
social and political issues ranging from immigration
and women's rights to mental illness and culture
shock. Eylem is presently working on her new
documentary on Kurdish youth.
Production Credits
A film by?Malcolm Guy & Eylem Kaftan
Réalisation et scénarisation? Malcolm Guy & Eylem
Kaftan
Produced by ?Lucie Pageau
Picture editor?Eylem Kaftan
Director of photography? Ali Reggab
Sound?Malcolm Guy
Original music ?Karim Benzaïd?Aras Bukauskas
Executive producer?Michelle Smith
Line producer?Valerie Shamash
Production coordinator? Aude Maltais
Assistant director and researcher?Aude Maltais?Craig
Segal
Production secretary?Elisabeth Klein
Intern?Christian Durand

For more information on BLEDI visit
http://www.pmm.qc.ca/bledi/en/home.html

Held Mondays to Saturdays at Mag:net Café Katipunan,
Cinekatipunan screenings start at 5:30 PM. While the
film screenings are free, viewers are encouraged to
make voluntary contributions for the honoraria of the
filmmakers. Cinekatipunan programs precede Mag:net
Café's nightly holding of Live Performances by
well-known and emerging bands and musicians. Mag:net
Café is located along Katipunan Avenue (fronting
Miriam and Ateneo) in Quezon City. For more inquiries
please call 9293191 or email magnetcafekatips@yahoo.com.ph
or visit www.magnet.com.ph.