Celebrating 20 Years of Independent Film in Beirut | Founding director Hania Mroue

Hania Mroue, founding director of Metropolis Cinema, breaks down the wild journey of building a cultural sanctuary in the heart of Beirut. From opening its doors one day before a war to being evicted with only 48 hours' notice, this is a story of grit and pure love for the big screen. We dive into the urgent mission of preserving Lebanon’s decaying film memory and why independent cinema is actually for everyone, not just the elite. It’s a raw look at how art survives in an unstable world, and why you should definitely skip the sofa for a real theater seat.   00:00 Introduction 02:11 Early Aspirations for a National Narrative 04:14 Establishing the First Regional Arab Film Festival 06:52 Testing the Waters of Public Interest 08:33 A Debut Marked by Regional Instability 10:50 Scaling Up the Vision 13:58 Navigating Sudden Displacement of the Cinema 16:54 The Broader Regional Film Network 24:50 The Fate of Physical Archives 27:35 The Weight of Global Platforms and Political Statements 33:44 Shifting Economic Realities and Streaming Impact 45:34 Challenging the Notion of Exclusive Spaces 51:04 The Irreplaceable Nature of the Theater   Hania Mroue is the founder and director of Metropolis Cinema, which opened in 2006 and is Lebanon’s only art house movie theater. In 2010, she launched MC Distribution, a company dedicated to selling and distributing Arab and international independent titles in the MENA region. She is a founding member of Aflamuna (formerly Beirut DC), created in 1998 to promote and support independent Arab films. For 10 years she has been the managing director of the Arab film festival Ayam Beirut al Cinema’iya. She was appointed as chief Arab programmer at the Doha Tribeca Film Festival (2010-2012). She has served as jury member for several film festivals around the world, including for Cannes’ Critics Week, the Berlinale, Cinema Du Réel and others. Most recently, she was a consultant for Arab film programming and industry events at the Marrakesh International Film Festival from 2020 to 2023.   Connect with Hania Mroue 👉 https://instagram.com/mrouehania   FOLLOW & RATE THE KAWALIS PODCAST: » Apple Podcasts:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/afikra-movie-night/id1646405109 » Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6wG6CeZgE9LGtOVKwB6d5U » Anghami: https://play.anghami.com/podcast/1044639402 THIS SERIES IS PART OF THE AFIKRA PODCAST NETWORK Explore all episodes in this series: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfYG40bwRKl7IMTj6Jk7yAJXCMMqxaP5A&feature=shared ABOUT AFIKRA afikra | عفكرة is a movement to convert passive interest in the Arab world to active intellectual curiosity. We aim to collectively reframe the dominant narrative of the region by exploring the histories and cultures of the region – past, present and future – through conversations driven by curiosity. 📍 Local events in 40+ locations worldwide http://afikra.com/chapters 🎧 New podcasts + videos weekly http://afikra.com/podcasts ⚡ Become a member: https://www.afikra.com/membership 🔗 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/afikra_ 🔗 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/afikra.official 🔗 Twitter: https://twitter.com/afikra Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.