Fouad Mikati

1982

"1982" is a life-affirming coming-of-age tale set at an idyllic school in Lebanon’s mountains on the eve of a looming invasion. It unfolds over a single day and follows an 11-year-old boy’s relentless quest to profess his love to a girl in his class. As the invasion encroaches on Beirut, it upends the day, threatening the entire country and its cohesion. Within the microcosm of the school, the film draws a harrowing portrait of a society torn between its desire for love and peace and the ideological schisms unraveling its seams. In his debut feature, director Oualid Mouaness delivers an ode to innocence in which he revisits one of the most cataclysmic moments in Lebanon's history through the lens of a child and his vibrant imagination. The film demonstrates the complexities of love and war, and the resilience of the human spirit.

The Lion

Writer/performer Benjamin Scheuer tells a story about love, loss, loyalty and the redemptive power of music. This one-man musical is also a coming of age story, where a son seeks his father's love and goes on a deeply personal journey to become his own man. Scheuer plays and sings the incredible story of his family and his close call with mortality, all while supported by a cast of 6 guitars. Some stories have to be sung.

Capernaum

After running away from his negligent parents, committing a violent crime and being sentenced to five years in jail, a hardened, streetwise 12-year-old Lebanese boy sues his parents in protest of the life they have given him.