Freedom is never a gift; it’s a break. This program explores the brutal choice between staying trapped or facing the terrifying price of running away—and the quiet, exhausting defiance it takes to stay put and build a life on your own terms. Free of fancy speeches, these films capture the messy, close-up reality of people fighting actual walls, rigid traditions, and buried fears just to exist without compromise.

We begin with Taazrit, which explores the profound bond between Habiba and her native land; living alone in a traditional, male-dominated society, her warm demeanor masks a quietly subversive way of life that balances deep roots with a fierce desire for emancipation. The struggle shifts inward with Red Thread, where three strangers meet in the dim basement of a forgotten mall for an unusual audition; as the camera rolls, reality and recollection blur, forcing them to confront buried memories to finally break free from decades of shadows. Finally, the handmade, stop-motion world of Out of Gaza follows a young Palestinian engineer planning an escape from the strip with her friends, only to be forced to confront the unexpected, confusing barriers waiting for her on the outside. Together, these films expose exactly what it takes to tear your life away from a system built to keep you down.

Taazrit
by Arinas Kaouther Dernouni, Algeria 2024, 34', Arabic and French with English subtitle

Read Threat
by Ahmad Naboulsi, Lebanon, 2025, 25', Arabic with English subtitles 

Out of Gaza
by Seza Tiyara Selen and Maris Osterburg, Germany, 2025, 9', Animation, German with English subtitles