Palestinian film 3000 Nights scooped two awards at the Festival du Film et des Cultures Méditerranéennes (Festival of Mediterranean Film and Culture) in Bastia--the Kantara France Bleu RCFM and the Hors les Murs awards. Directed by Mai Masri and co-produced by Palestine, France, Jordan, the UAE, Qatar and Lebanon, 3000 Nights centres on a young newly-wed Palestinian school teacher who is jailed in a top-security Israeli prison where she eventually gives birth. The film has garnered over 10 awards since its world premiere in September 2015 at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). Maisa Abdelhadi won the Best Actress Award for her role in the film at the closing ceremony of the 2nd Mediterranean Film Festival of Annaba (FAFM) in Algeria. The film also won the Best Feature and the Audience Award at the 6th Malmo Arab Film Festival, the Special Jury Award at Washington, DC International Film Festival (Filmfest DC), the Jury Award at the 8th Women's International Film and Television Showcase (The WIFTS), USA, the Meeting Point Audience Award at the 60th Valladolid International Film Festival in Spain, as well as the Youth Jury Award and the Women's Jury Award at the Paysages des Cineastes in France. 3000 Nights has been selected by Jordan's Royal Film Commission to represent the country at the 2017 Academy Awards Best Foreign Language Film category. Masri graduated with a BA degree from UC Berkeley and San Francisco State University. Her documentaries tackle the humanity and resilience of ordinary people. She's garnered over 60 awards at international film festivals for her early films such as Under the Rubble (1983), Wild Flowers: Women of South Lebanon (1986), as well as her more recent ones including Beirut Diaries: Truth, Lies and Videos (2006) and 33 Days (2007). For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture
