The One Man Village

THE ONE MAN VILLAGE

org. title. Semaan Bil Day'ia

Simon El Habre

Lebanon, 2008, 86'

WEB
www.theonemanvillage.com

AWARDS and FESTIVALS
Dubai International Film Festival: Special Jury Award, Arab Documentary 2008
One World International Documentary Film Festival Prague: Special Mention 2009
Hot Docs: Best International Feature 2009

PRESS QUOTE
"A wonderful work, in every aspect." ~ Knut Elstermann, Radioeins

"Simon El Habre certainly emerges as a talent to watch, and his gift for composition and mood indicates he could be equally comfortable in the fiction arena with his next. ~ Fionnuala Halligan, Screen Daily

SYNOPSIS
In 1983, in the region of Mount Lebanon, an hour's drive from the Lebanese capital Beirut, there was a period of merciless fighting between Christian and Druze militias that ended in reprisals against civilians in the form of massacres and displacement. The Christian inhabitants of Mount Lebanon had to seek refuge in Beirut. Entire villages, including Aïn al-Halazoun, were evacuated and destroyed. Reconciliation was officially declared in 1994 and Christians were allowed to return to their villages. But 13 years later, Aïn al-Halazoun is still a ghost town. Its inhabitants decided to stay in Beirut in spite of the difficult living conditions there. However, they regularly go back to the village to cultivate their plots of land or visit their houses but always leave before sunset. Only one man has decided to return to Aïn al-Halazoun for good: Semaan El Habre.
Over a one-year period, Semaan El Habre returned to his village with his film team to observe the daily routine in Aïn al-Halazoun. His portrait of life in the quasi ghost town reflects the collective and individual memory of the place. It calls into question formal reconciliations. Yet the story of Semaan El Habre, who decided to return home against all odds, is also - and above all - a story of healing.