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The 5th Annual Middle East Film Festival
Origins. Exile. Refuge.
Jan 30–Feb 13

All films are free, open to the public and located at The Evergreen State College in Olympia. For screen times, guest speakers and location visit www.evergreen.edu/sesame. For more information call (360)867-6724, sesame@evergreen.edu. For a complete festival guide visit www.evergreen.edu/sesame.

This week's films and speakers:

BATTLE OF ALGIERS
Gillo Pontecorvo / 1966 / Algeria / 121 min
Wed., Jan 30, 7 pm, Lecture Hall 1

One of the most influential political films in history, Gillo Pontecorvo's The Battle of Algiers vividly recreates a key year in the tumultuous Algerian struggle for independence from the occupying French in the 1950s. Shot in the streets of Algiers in documentary style, the film is a case study in modern warfare, with its terrorist attacks and the brutal techniques used to combat them.

Partly based on the real-life experiences of Algerian resistance leader Saadi Yacef (who served as a consultant to the film and also starred in the film as himself), the Battle of Algiers reportedly became study material for the Black Panther Party and the IRA. It was also studied by the FBI and the US Army in the 1960s. Moreover, Newsweek warned that the film could provide a blueprint for a future "Negro" uprising in the US. Now the Pentagon has studied it for its value in counterinsurgency tactics.

Followed by Q&A with Mohammed Bentlemsani. Born in 1950, Mohammed Bentlemsani's childhood was during the French occupation and the Algerian resistance movement. Born in a town 30 miles south of Algiers in Medea Mohammed witnessed the murder of his cousin by the French occupation forces in November of 1961.

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