Summer Cinema: Home, Longing and Solitude

Jameel’s Summer Cinema, organised in collaboration with The Culturist Film Club and curated by Hind Mezaina, ia a season of free-to-attend films about cities, archives, and the ways we live and remember together. The four short films this evening explore ideas of belonging, identity, and human connection with humour, tenderness, and insight:

Why is My Grandfather’s Bed in Our Living Room? dir Sarah Alhashimi (2021, 7 min)

An Emirati family recall the sudden loss of their ancestral house to development plans aimed at modernising the city. A century-old wooden bed, the only tangible memory that remains, is a poignant feature of their story.

Practical Dreams: dir Yulia Piskuliyska (2019, 9 min)

An experimental documentary which examines the existential outlook on life of Antony, a long-time UAE resident who builds houses for a living but is at a loss when it comes to explaining what home really means to him.

The Tobacconist: dir Keifer Nyron Taylor (2024, 22 min)

Tobias, an unemployed British-Jamaican personal trainer, sells counterfeit tobacco for his mother who is moving back to Jamaica after deportation threats. One violent encounter with a war veteran rough sleeper, a spectral reminder of his father who also fought for Britain, turns his quick cash scheme into a haunting odyssey across South London.

Tender Loving Care: dir Kalina Pulit (2023, 20 min)

A single woman in her 30s living in London calls up various customer care lines in search of some kind of connection. She pushes the boundaries of people she speaks to, with varying results; she seeks dating advice from her bank, talks about films with her doctor and bonds with her Internet provider over the topic of reincarnation. Call centres become a backdrop for conversations about the meaning of life and big city loneliness.

Following the screening, Sarah Alhashimi will discuss the films with Hind Mezaina. Audiences are encouraged to engage in collective viewing, stay for the discussion, and enjoy food and refreshments available throughout the evening.