THE NORWEGIAN PEACE FILM AWARD JURY TIFF 2013
Roswitha Skare - Professor, Department of Culture and Literature, University of Tromsø, Norway
Abdalsalam Shehada - Documentary filmmaker, Gaza, Palestine
Anne Marit Bachmann - Student, Master of Peace and Conflict Studies, University of Tromsø, Norway
OMAR
Palestine | 2013 | 97 min
Director: Hany Abu-Assad
Screenplay: Hany Abu-Assad
Photography: Ehab Assal
Actors: Adam Bakri, Waleed Zuaiter, Samer Bishara, Leem Lubany, Ehab Hoorani
Producer: David Gerson, Waleed F. Zuaiter
OMAR is a psychological thriller situated on the occupied West Bank. A concrete wall divides the hometown of Omar and his two best friends Tarek and Amjad. Regularly they risk their lives climbing the separation wall to simply hang out. Omar also has a secret love on the other side, high schooler Nadia, Tarek’s sister. Repeatedly humiliated by the Israeli soldiers and surrounded by violence, the young men are desperate to gain a sense of control. A soldier is shot, and Israel’s revenge is swift; Omar is confined and tortured. Israeli agent Rami cuts a deal with him: find Tarek and avoid imprisonment for the rest of your life.
OMAR shares themes and narrative elements with director Abu-Assad's acclaimed PARADISE NOW. With excellently portrayed characters, played mainly by amateurs, it explores the fate of people under intense pressure.
Director info
Hany Abu-Assad (b. 1961) is from Nazareth, but immigrated to The Netherlands in 1980, where he studied technical engineering. He has worked extensively as a director, writer, and producer. In 2006 his film PARADISE NOW won the Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film, and it received an Academy Award-nomination in the same category.