A reflection on the intersecting destinies of comrades who were once bound by ideologies and remain tightly knit friends, We Were Communists is director Maher Abi Samra's uninhibited examination of the legacy of Lebanon's civil war and its post-war present. Four men recount their stories from the battlefield, their broken dreams, and their eventual disillusionment in light of the country's ongoing unsettled crises. At once artistically and politically audacious, incisive and tender, We Were Communists travels the chimeric and daunting reality of Lebanon's fractured post-war landscape. As sectarian leaders continue to strengthen their hold over political discourse, the film poses serious questions regarding the country's future.
-Rasha Salti


SHEOEYIN KENNA (WE WERE COMMUNISTS) by Maher Abi Samra - Lebanon, France, U.A.E, 90 mins (MIEFF 2009, Abu Dhabi) 85' (Venezia 2010 - Venice Film Fest)

Lebanon / 2009 / 40 min. / Color / DigiBeta / Arabic / English subtitles / Suitable for all ages

Director: Maher Abi Samra
Image: Claire Mathon
Sound Engineer: Moncef Taleb
Editor: Carine Doumit
Sound Editor: Rana Eid
Producer: Jinane Dagher (Orjouane Productions)
Co-Producer: Serge Lalou (Les Films d'Ici)

language: Arabic - s/t English/Italian





FESTIVALS

2010 | VENEZIA 67 - 67th Venice International Film Festival (67. Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica) | 1 > 11 September 2010 | www.labiennale.org/it/cinema/mostra/film/sel-uff/orizzonti/sheoeyin-kenna.html
* Orizzonti
- 9 September 15:00 - Sala Perla
- 10 September 17:45 - Sala Pasinetti


2009 | MIEFF, Abu Dhabi
* DOCUMENTARY FEATURE COMPETITION
* WORLD PREMIERE

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SHEOEYIN KENNA (WE WERE COMMUNISTS) di Maher Abi Samra - Libano, Francia, U.A.E., 85'
v.o. arabo - s/t inglese/italiano
(documentario)




SHEOEYIN KENNA è una riflessione sui destini intrecciati di ex-militanti che erano un tempo legati da un'ideologia comune e che sono rimasti amici stretti. Il regista Maher Abi Samra compie un'indagine disinibita dell'eredità della guerra civile del Libano e del presente postbellico di questo Paese. Quattro uomini raccontano le loro storie dal campo di battaglia, i loro sogni infranti, e la loro disillusione finale alla luce delle continue crisi irrisolte del Paese. SHEOEYIN KENNA percorre la realtà chimerica e terribile del paesaggio spezzato del Libano postbellico. Mentre i leader delle varie fazioni continuano a rafforzare il loro controllo del dibattito politico, il film pone serie domande sul futuro del Paese.