More films

ABUSED REFUGEE WOMEN & UNRWA'S RESPONSE
Director: Hazim Bitar / Documentary / 11 min. / 2008

Synopsis: Adding to the pain of exile, women refugees must coupe with lack of resources when confronted with abuse. To respond to these abuses, UNRWA's Legal Advice Bureau was launched to empower women in refugee camps in Jordan to stand up for their rights.

Producer: UNRWA Jordan

THE LIGHTHOUSE: ABDULHAMEED SHOMAN FOUNDATION 
Director: Hazim Bitar / Documentary / 10 min. / 2007
Synopsis: An informational film about Jordan's leading cultural foundation.
Producer: Abdulhameed Shoman Foundation

JRF AND COMMUNITIES OF HOPE 
Director: Hazim Bitar / Documentary /13 min. / 2004

Synopsis: A series of short films on human interest stories from communities in Jordan, whose lives have been touched by the programs and people of the Jordan River Foundation (JRF).

Producer: Jordan River Foundation

TEACHING HEYAM: GIRLS' EDUCATION IN RURAL SYRIA
Director: Hazim Bitar / Documentary / 12 min. / 2003

Synopsis: Heyam is a 13-year-old girl living in the Syrian village of Shmaytieha in the province of Deir Ezzour. When her father passed away and her eldest brother was conscripted, she and her sisters had to leave school to care for the farm and support the family's meager income. Fortunately, with the help of UNICEF, specialized educational programs in rural schools have been introduced to help keep more girls like Heyam studying for a better future.

Producer: UNICEF MENA.

GIRLS' EDUCATION UNDER SIEGE IN HEBRON 
Director: Hazim Bitar / Documentary / 5 min. / 2003

Synopsis: Frequent curfews imposed by the Israeli military in Hebron and the constant clashes during the second Intifada have resulted in decreasing attendance for both Palestinian teachers and students. Naturally, girls are the most vulnerable segment of the population in such a security situation. Yet teachers and parents, with UNICEF support, have devised a workable scheme to promote learning for girls in Hebron via a set of practices referred to as the Distance Remedial Education Project (DREP). Local TV stations in cooperation with the local school system, introduced educational broadcasts and developed take-home workshops, to ensure girls in Hebron are not left behind.

Producer: UNICEF MENA.

JERUSALEM'S HIGH COST OF LIVING 
Director: Hazim Bitar / Documentary / 53 min. / 2002

Synopsis: A Palestinian-American filmmaker's account of the first days of the September 2000 Jerusalem uprising and the ordeal of a Palestinian family from Old City Jerusalem.

FILM FESTIVALS & SCREENINGS (partial)
  • Ismailiyah International Film Festival 2004, Egypt.
  • Carthage Film Festival 2004, Tunis.
  • Dreams of a Nation Film Festival 2002, USA.
  • San Francisco Arab Film Festival 2001, USA.
  • Chicago Palestine Film Festival 2001, USA
  • The George Washington University, USA
  • The Georgetown University, USA
  • University of Southern California, USA
  • University of South Florida, USA
  • University of Maryland, USA
  • Duke University, USA
  • McGill University, Canada
  • University of Concordia, Canada
  • Carleton University, Canada
  • Darat el Funun, Jordan

UNCIVIL LIBERTIES: SECRET TRIALS IN AMERICA
Director: Hazim Bitar / Documentary / 30 min. / 2000

Synopsis: When the US Constitution is reduced to clichés, innocent people pay. A stateless Palestinian professor, Mazen Al Najjar, languished in a Florida solitary confinement for over 4 years on classified evidence that neither he nor his lawyer were allowed to review, despite favorable rulings by his judges