Boston Palestine Film Festival 2008

May 15, 1948, marks the day the British government abandoned the Arab-Jewish battlefields and left both groups in the throes of war. Major Derek Cooper witnessed those final days of the mandate as an officer in the British Army. Going Home tells the story of Cooper's return to Israel in the summer of 1995. In an effort to capture the past, Cooper and his wife revisit famous sites and talk to Palestinians and Israelis about the events of 1948. This film is a compelling look back at the beginning of a conflict that would last for generations to come.

Omar Qattan was born in Beirut, Lebanon to Palestinian parents. His father, Abd al-Rahman Qattan, came from Jaffa, but had to flee the city in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. His family moved to London in 1975. In 1982, Omar Qattan was strongly influenced by the Sabra and Shatila massacre. Qattan began his filming career by directing 15 to 20-minute documentaries and dramas. His first full-length film, Dreams & Silence, was made in 1991. The documentary received the Joris Ivens Award and was broadcast in Europe and Australia. He founded Sindibad Films Ltd in 1993 and forged a close partnership with filmmaker Michel Khleifi. The two co-produced and directed Tale of the Three Jewels and Forbidden Marriages in the Holy Land. Qattan's latest full-length film and perhaps the most controversial is Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet, a two-hour documentary on Muhammad's life and his legacy with Muslims in the United States. It was aired on PBS in 2002 and won great acclaim.