Makloubeh (Upside Down) (Rashid Masharawi, Palestine, 1999). The preparation of Makloubeh, a traditional Palestinian dish, is served up as image and substance, reflecting on the nature of nourishment, the land and culture. Masharawi uses a regardful humor and a bucolic freshness of shots in this short treatise on Palestinian identity. (5:25 mins, In Arabic with English subtitles, From Cinema Production Center)

Tension (Tawattor) (Rashid Masharawi, Palestine, 1998). Time stretches eternally, oppressing your daily life to the smallest and largest degree, in humiliating detail-regular check points, opening boxes. Masharawi succeeds brilliantly in depicting the daily abuses of life under occupation and the suffocating repression enacted by the Israeli military presence in Palestine. (24:45 mins, In Arabic with English subtitles, From CPC)

News Time (Azza El-Hassan, Palestine, 2001). El-Hassan finds herself unable to locate a film crew for her documentary since everybody is occupied recording the news. So she sets out to depict a love story that is blossoming between her landlord and his wife. Jets start shelling Ramallah, her subjects flee, and she diverts her attention to the activities of four young boys who regularly pass by on their way to confront Israeli soldiers at the nearby blockade. The videotape is an introspective reflection on boys who act out of resistance, boredom, and loyalty to friends and country. A disarming view of the confrontations murderously weighed in favor of the Israeli forces. (52 mins, In Arabic with English subtitles, From d.net.sales)

Notes by Jayce Salloum, condensed.