Palestinian-French actressHiam Abbassand her filmmaker daughterLina Soualemtouch down at theTorontoInternational Film Festival on Monday with documentaryBye Bye Tiberias.
Deadline talked to Abbass and Soualem in Venice.
DEADLINE:Its a very intimate film.
Hiam Abbass and Lina Soualem in Bye Bye TiberiasBeall Productions
Why did you decide to lay bare your personal stories in this way?
LINA SOUALEM: Its a continuation of what I started doing withTheir Algeria.
I didnt think of the film as an intimate film at first.
I wanted to show these women are a mix of everything.
DEADLINE:Hiam, why did you decide to come on board this project?
HIAM ABBASS: I was already talking to a producer who wanted to do a movie.
I didnt know I would be in it.
At first, I resisted.
I would have preferred to play a part rather than be myself.
But then, in this movie, I almost dont see myself as Hiam.
I see myself as a woman with a journey that belongs to a group of women…
This is a way to makePalestineeternal in a way.
ABBASS:My point of departure in life is always no regrets.
We make choices, we assume them.
I think one of the riches of Lina today is her multicultural situation.
DEADLINE:On that basis, why is there this longing, or nostalgia for Palestine?
Theres a still a lot of denial.
Its like part of your identity is denied so its harder to find your place, to exist.
There are a lot of different layers.
This is what makes it vital and essential.
I couldnt see myself advancing in life without tackling that.
DEADLINE:The film is also a very political film, was that intentional?
Its not something that I was looking for.
The ruptures in their lives are linked with a political context.
And of course, for me, I dont see our existence as apolitical.
SOUALEM:A variety of different sources.
British Pathe, French archives and private collections…
There are no centralized archives or national policy around gathering this material in one place.
If you want to source images showing the 20s, 30s and 40, you have to look hard.
Aside from this shot, you do not show many Israelis in the film.
SOUALEM:I film my family.
I dont film other characters.
Its exactly the same inTheir Algeria.
There was never a thought of trying to film other things.
If other people are in the frame, they just happened to be there at the time.
DEADLINE:That scene is very powerful.
Hiam, you dont say anything but your expression speaks volumes.
What were you thinking?
I didnt even know how it was.
I had only heard stories about it.
But its so different now.
DEADLINE:Lina, was your grandmother behind the project?
ABBASS: I dont know.
Its a movie that was necessary for Lina to make and for me to be part of.
I didnt make it to tell the world, This is the background of Hiam Abbass.
Its not about me, its about women who really stood up in difficult situations and proved themselves.
Their survival is a journey of its own.
Theyre always about forgiveness about love.
This is something that I admire a lot.
