Free screening of acclaimed Lebanese film Arzé

Arzé, a single mother, is determined to buy her son a used scooter so he can help her deliver the mouth-watering pies she bakes, her only source of income. To make this happen, she steals and pawns her sister's bracelet–which may or may not have been a good idea. But alas, the scooter is stolen! Arzé takes matters into her own hands and drags her reluctant son all over Beirut in search of the missing scooter. Arzé and her son quickly find themselves embroiled in a long journey full of twists and turns as they navigate the sectarianism and chaos of Beirut. To blend in with each neighborhood they visit, Arzé gets creative and puts on a whole disguise. She's a chameleon, changing her accent, donning a hijab or a Christian cross, and even giving Kinan a new name. She’ll do anything to find the scooter. The quest is long and frustrating. As tensions rise and family secrets are revealed, finding the scooter is at stake and so is the unity of Arzé’s family.

Official Selection:

-2024 Tribeca Film Festival

-18th Beijing International Film Festival

-45th Cairo International Film Festival

Mira Shaib is a Lebanese director of the feature film Arzé (2024) and the short films "Lilacs" and "Diaspora." She is an alumnus of prestigious film development labs and residencies, including Robert Bosch Stiftung, Film Academy Baden-Württemberg, Film Independent's Global Media Makers LA Residency, the Red Sea Lodge, and the Torino Film Lab. Mira Shaib earned a Bachelor of Arts in Film and Television from the Lebanese American University (LAU) in Beirut and a Master of Fine Arts in Cinematic Arts from Concordia University in Montreal, Canada. Mira co-founded Cinema For All, an arts initiative with a mission to make cinema accessible in rural Lebanon. Her first feature film, Arzé, was selected to be in the official selections for the Cairo International Film Festival, Beijing International Film Festival, and Tribeca Festival. Mira is working on her second feature film.

Host or Publisher Lebanese American University