Whether documentary or fiction, films on human rights issues can not only change the way people see the world and affect their future actions, but in some cases — such as Pamela Yates' Granito — can actually become instruments of justice in themselves. Offering sobering accounts of oppression, violence, and intolerance occurring worldwide, the films in this year's Human Rights Watch Film Festival also allows us to experience the courage of the victims of and fighters against injustice, who share their stories of survival and their inspiring will to rebuild their lives. In their unblinking confrontation with suffering, these films offer hope that the very act of bearing witness can in itself help prevent the occurrence of further atrocities. — Alex RogalskiThe annual festival details stories of injustice, oppression, and stubbornly unquenchable hope in nine documentary and fiction films from around the globe.
All events take place at TIFF Bell Lightbox, 350 King Street West, Reitman Square, Toronto.
http://tiff.net/filmsandschedules/tiffbelllightbox/2012/4400000520
Events in Human Rights Watch 2012
Special Flight
Fernand Melgar
Director Fernand Melgar movingly documents the stories of detainees anxiously awaiting news of their requests for asylum in a Swiss refugee centre.
- Wednesday February 29
- 08:00 PM
Habibi
Susan Youssef
Two young lovers are separated by both physical and cultural barriers in the occupied Gaza Strip in this tragic romance.
- Thursday March 1
- 08:00 PM
The Bully Project
Lee Hirsch
Sundance and Emmy Award-winning director Lee Hirsch details shocking stories of emotional and physical abuse, and official neglect, in this exposé of the bullying epidemic in North American schools.
- Friday March 2
- 08:00 PM
Color of the Ocean
Maggie Peren
A German tourist and a Spanish border guard determine to help a father-and-son pair of refugees in this compelling moral drama.
- Saturday March 3
- 08:00 PM
Burma Soldier
Nic Dunlop, Annie Sundberg, Ricki Stern
Ex-soldier turned democratic activist Myo Myint relates the story of his struggle against the Burmese dictatorship in this engrossing first-person documentary.
- Sunday March 4
- 08:00 PM
This Is My Land ... Hebron
Giulia Amati, Stephen Natanson
Directors Giulia Amati and Stephen Natanson create a vivid portrait of the largest city in the occupied West Bank, where 160,000 Palestinians live alongside 600 Israeli settlers — and 2,000 Israeli soldiers — in an atmosphere constantly brimming with potential violence.
- Monday March 5
- 08:00 PM
The Price of Sex
Mimi Chakarova
Award-winning photojournalist Mimi Chakarova delves into the world of international sex trafficking in this startling exposé.
- Tuesday March 6
- 08:00 PM
Granito: How to Nail a Dictator
Pamela Yates
Director Pamela Yates' own 1982 documentary on the Guatemalan dictatorship's undeclared war against the indigenous population becomes evidence in a war crimes trial in this fascinating documentary that is part memoir, part political thriller.
- Thursday March 8
- 08:00 PM
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