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OCTOBER , 2011
Run the Sahara 2012 Launch
in support of music empowerment initiative Studio-Live
Saturday October 1st
3pm –5.50pm
Riverside Studios
Hammersmith, London W6 9RL
Featuring a screening of the award-winning documentary El Problema, readings by acclaimed playwright and poet Inua Ellams and preview of The Runner.
Sandblast’s 4th annual campaign of Run the Sahara will help raise funds for its exciting new music empowerment initiative –Studio Live – in the Saharawi refugee camps in SW Algeria aiming to enable artists to develop professionally and reach international audiences through music and express their culture and struggle more widely.
“The plight of the people of the Western Sahara, whose land was illegally occupied after the Spanish colonisers left in 1975, is one of the most under-reported of our time….the struggle for self-determination has gone largely without word in the Western media. This is an issue we need to know about and to understand, if anything is to be done to bring relief to the Saharawi people.” Jon Snow, Channel 4
Programme
El Problema Screening and Q&A (Ticketed event)
3.30 – 4.30pm
The award-winning documentary will be followed by a Q&A session with director, Pablo Vidal, and human-rights activist from Western Sahara, Rabab Amidane.
(Bookings through Riverside Studios at www.riversidestudios.co.uk or call 0208 237 1111)
4.50pm – 5.50pm
• With readings of Saharawi writings (short stories and poetry) by performance poet and playwright Inua Ellams (The 14th Tale);
• A sneak preview of The Runner, the upcoming documentary about world-class Saharawi athlete Salah Ameidan, endorsed by Ken Loach and John Pilger;
• Former Run the Sahara participants share their personal experiences.
• Registration: We will of course be encouraging all those who are thinking of going to take the leap and sign up to register on the day!
March, 2011
• Opening night of 9th Annual Oxford Human Rights Film festival
When: March 2nd, 7pm
Where: Headington Hill Hall, Headington Campus, Oxford Brookes University, 0X3 0BP
Organised as a joint venture between CENDEP Oxford Brookes & the newly established Brookes Hub, the 9th Annual Oxford Brookes Human Rights Film Festival aims to raise awareness of social, economical and environmental concerns around the globe. Sandblast director, Danielle Smith, will speak on opening night of the festival and introduce El Problema, which will be screened on closing night March 11th.
• Film Screening of El Problema
When: March 11th, 7pm
Where: The Jam Factory Oxford Restaurant and Bar, Hollybush Row, 27 Park End Street, Oxford, OX1 1HU
Film running time: 53 minutes
Award-winning Spanish documentary, El Problema (2010), filmed over four and half years, highlights how the physical expression of Sahrawi identity is threatened by the impact of exile and Morocco’s occupation. They are forbidden even the use of the word ‘Western Sahara” or the word “referendum” and are referred to as “el problema”. Sandblast arts will be present for Q&A afterwards. This will be followed by a sneak preview of the upcoming film “The Runner” about the life and mission of triple gold winning Saharawi runner Salah Amaidan, due to be released for 2012 Olympics.
February, 2011
• Photo Exhibtion: “Thirst of the Dunes”
When: Feb 27 to May 1
Where: Redroaster Coffee House, 1d St James Street, Kemptown, Brighton BN2 1RE
Preview night: Feb 27th, 7:30pm onward
Admission: free
Robert Griffin and Stefan Simanowitz document the lives of the Saharawi refugees displaced from their native Western Sahara. Preview night will include a film screening of “Deserted and a brief talk.
December Friday 10th, 2010, 3.45pm
Screening of El Problema at Human Rights Film Festival.
Details: The award-winning film, El Problema, will be screened as part of International Human Rights Day events at Roehampton University. Producer, Sairi Rose, and Sandblast Director, Danielle Smith, will be present for Q & A.
Where: Duchene 004 & 301, Roehampton University, Roehampton Lane, London SW15 5SL
When: 3.45pm
Admission: FREE
November 4th, 2010, 6pm
“Thirst of the Dunes” Exhibition plus film screening and Q&A with photographers and special guests, Danielle Smith and Lamine Baali
Opening night of the photographic exhibition, Thirst of the Dunes, by Robert Griffith and Stefan Simonowitz at Open the Gate in Stoke Newington. A well-attended reception in the gallery was followed by the screening of the short documentary film, “Deserted”, produced by Sandblast in the refugee camps. The photographers plus UK Polisario representative, Lamine Baali, and Sandblast Director, Danielle Smith, led a Q & A session afterwards.
October 29th, 2010, 6.45pm
Film screening of “The Runner” plus Q&A with filmmaker Saeed Taji Farouky at the City Circle (Abrar House, 45 Crawford Place, W1H 4LP).
Farouky tells stories of human struggle through documentaries that took him to the depth of Gaza’s trade tunnels and the heart of the Algerian desert passing by Lebanon, Burundi and his hometown, London. Unlike other human rights documentaries with a clear activist agenda or their opponents work to dismiss their claims, Saeed seeks grey areas where the moral ambiguities of such issues are found. His works document the stories of individuals and allows the audience to draw their own conclusions about their stories.
In this talk, Saeed will share with us his approach to creating human rights documentaries and the need to be critical of the causes we support. The talk will be illustrated with the screening of some parts of his films I See The Stars At Noon, Tunnel Trade, and his latest project, The Runner. The Runner is the story Salah Ameidan, a world-champion long-distance runner from Western Sahara, who left behind his family, his athletics career and his citizenship to run for his nation’s independence.
October 26th, 2010
Students in the Sahara – Launch Night
Students in the Sahara is a scheme run by Sahara Health Initiative (SHI) to provide students with a unique Public Health experience in Western Saharan refugee camps. With the support of SHI, students will be able to plan their own projects such as clinical placements, work in public health or joining a research project in the camps.
The 3-week expedition will take place in September 2011. Prior to the trip, participants will have the opportunity to learn more about the history and culture of Western Sahara and to take Spanish lessons via Skype with Glovico, a social enterprise allowing people from the developing world to earn money by teaching their native language. In the camps, students will participate in home stays in small groups with Saharawi families.
If you are interested in taking part, attend the launch night to discover more about the opportunities on offer and get all the details you need.
October 7, 2010
Screening of EL PROBLEMA at UCL, Human Rights film series
Screening of award-winning film The Problem (2010) followed by Q&A with the Sandblast team. The team will also be available for promotion material for the upcoming Running the Sahara 2011.
Join us at the Harrie Massey Lecture Theatre, 25 Gordon Street, London WC1H 0AY on Thursday from 6.30pm. Entry for the event is free, but non-students must be on the guest list (email to be added).
Synopsis of The Problem
Produced by Jordi Ferrer and Pablo Vidal, the Spanish documentary features testimonies and documents gathered over four and a half years in Western Sahara to highlight how all physical expressions of Saharawi identity are forbidden and even the use of the name Western Sahara or the word referendum is a problem.
The Problem or El Problema, is the winner of the Amnesty International Prize at the San Sebastian film festival in 2010, Human Rights Human Wrongs Film Festival in Oslo 2010, and the First Prize at FISAHARA 2010 International Sahara Film Festival.
For more information and the trailer, visit their website. |
