Monday | June 5 | 6:00 p.m.
* A very light snack will be served at 5:30 p.m.
** This series is co-sponsored by the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies at Georgetown University.
with
Co-Directors Andy Trimlett and Ahlam Muhtaseb to answer questions
Through riveting and moving personal recollections of both Palestinians and Israelis, 1948: Creation & Catastrophe reveals the shocking events of the most pivotal year in the most controversial conflict in the world. It tells the story of the establishment of Israel as seen through the eyes of the people who lived it. But rather than being a history lesson, this documentary is a primer for the present. It is simply not possible to make sense of what is happening in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict today without an understanding of 1948. This documentary is the last chance to hear first-hand accounts of what took place in Haifa, Jaffa, Dayr Yasin, Acre, Jerusalem, Ramle and Lydda from the Israelis and Palestinians who personally fought in and fled from this land. These shocking and dramatic events reveal the core of what drives the conflict today.The documentary includes interviews with veterans, refugees, survivors and historians of the war collected in Palestine, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States. Those who lived through the war are the centerpiece of the story, but respected historians, including Charles D. Smith, Avi Shlaim, Nur Masalha, Benny Morris, Ilan Pappe, Rashid Khalidi and Sharif Kanaaneh provide context for the events. By Andy Trimlett and Ahlam Muhtaseb / Palestine – US / 2017 / 99 mins
To find out more about the film click here.
Andy Trimlett, Director/Co-Producer, has a Master’s degree in Middle East Studies from the University of Washington and a Bachelor’s degree in International Security and Conflict Resolution from San Diego State University. He has a decade of experience in public television, having served as senior producer, associate producer, editor and camera operator on a wide range of productions. He has worked on PBS programs in the United States, Hungary and Austria, winning a regional Emmy for a 30-minute documentary he co-produced about property tax law in California.Ahlam Muhtaseb, Co-Producer/Co-Director, earned her B.A. in English Language and Literature from Hebron University. With the help of a Fulbright grant from the U.S. government, she earned her M.A. in Government Relations, and her Ph.D. in Mass Communication/Media Studies from the University of Memphis, Tennessee. She is a Professor of Communication Studies at California State University, San Bernardino teaching classes in media studies and public relations since 2003. Her research interests include digital communication, social media, social movements, and diasporic communities. She has published her scholarship on digital communication and other communication sub-topics, and has presented her scholarship to national and international conventions and scholarly meetings. Muhtaseb has conducted extensive field work in the Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon, Syria, and Palestine. Her most recent research is focused on digital media and the Arab Spring, with a special emphasis on cyber-activism and online social movements. Her previous film experience includes performing research for John Odam’s 2012 documentary Minarets in Temecula about the controversy over building a mosque in Temecula Valley, California.
