ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Drive devider Damascus Opera House opens to the public for #Womenmakechange

Damascus Opera House opens to the public for #Womenmakechange

Published Mar 24, 2022 08:00 pm

Filipino films featured in first International Women’s Film Festival in Syria

A historic moment for women empowerment in cinema, the first ever International Women’s Film Festival opened this week at the Dar al-Assad for Culture and Arts or the Damascus Opera House.

Under the patronage of Dr. Loubana Mouchaweh, the minister of culture, and through the initiative of the Philippine Embassy in Damascus, Syria, in partnership with the Diplomatic Club of Syria, this festival with the theme #WomenMakeChange celebrates women on the occasion of International Women’s Month by featuring inspiring, empowering, and award-winning world-class films from 11 countries, namely, the Philippines, Syria, Argentina, Belarus, Chile, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Palestine, South Africa, and Venezuela.

On March 23, Dr. Mouchaweh inaugurated the festival as the guest of honor during the invite-only opening reception. Philippine chargé d’affaires to Syria Vida Soraya Verzosa and Reneva Fourie, South African Ambassadorial Spouse, also delivered remarks. Certificates of Recognition were awarded onstage after the speeches.

Finally, the opening film, an award-winning documentary from the Philippines entitled “Ang Babae Sa Likod ng Mambabatok” (The Woman Behind the Tattoo Artist) by filmmaker Lauren Sevilla Faustino was be screened after the message of the film director herself.

In the morning of March 23 and 24, children were invited to watch the family-friendly Pakistani films Parwaaz Hai Junoon and Superstar, together with students from the Pakistan International School of Damascus.

This film festival allows women to take center stage, standing up for their rights, challenging stereotypes, breaking barriers, and serving as pioneers of change.

On March 24, the “Content is Queen” filmmakers workshop, featuring Tshepiso Phiri, a producer from South Africa, and film director Bassel Al Khatib, dean of the Cinema Institute, was held at the Multipurpose Hall.

Award-winning films from the select countries are being screened free of charge this weekend, until March 26, at the Damascus Opera House Drama Theater, including, from the Philippines, Sakaling Hindi Makarating (In Case They Don’t Arrive) by Ice Idanan, starring Best Actress Alessandra de Rossi, Teri Malvar, JC Santos, and Pepe Herrera and Lola Loleng (Grandmother Loleng) by Che Tagyamon, starring Lui Manansala, Mariel Urbiztondo, and Inna Tuason.

Other films being screened are Mariam by Bassel Al-Khatib, starring Ali Adel and Sabah Al Jazaery from Syria; Como Corre Elisa (How Elisa Runs) by Andrés Arbit and Gustavo Gersberg; Daughter of Pripyat from Belarus; Teresa by Tatiana Gaviola, starring Francisca Lewin, Juan Pablo Ogalde, and Diego Casanueva from Chile; The Women in Blue Berets by Farida Pacha from India; Mimpi Ananda Raih Semesta (Ananda’s Dream to Reach the Universe) by Sahrul Gibran from Indonesia; Superstar by Mohammed Ehteshamuddin, starring Mahira Khan and Bilal Ashraf, from Pakistan; Capable Entrepreneurs directed by the Ministry of Women’s Affairs from Palestine; Bhai’s Café by Maynard Kraak, starring Mehboob Bawa, Suraya Rose Santos and Siv Ngesi and Murder in Paris by Enver Samuel from South Africa; and La Casa del Fin de los Tiempos (The House at End of Time) by Alejandro Hidalgo, starring Ruddy Rodríguez, Guillermo Garcia, and Rosmel Bustamante, from Venezuela.

According to Verzosa, “this film festival allows women to take center stage, standing up for their rights, challenging stereotypes, breaking barriers, and serving as pioneers of change. This year, the Philippines, together with all participating embassies and consulates, recognizes women’s valuable role in society and proves that inclusive and sustainable development is only possible when gender equality becomes obtainable.”

Related Tags

Damascus Opera theaterCCP Panorama
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.