Cinematic magic, cultural exchanges highlight 8th Lebanese Film Festival in Montreal

A week-long celebration of film, music, and culture — this is what the Lebanese Film Festival in Canada is about.

The festival’s eighth edition tours five Canadian cities, including Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal, with multiple film screenings, workshops, and guests from Lebanon.

“The aim is actually to get to introduce the festival to more people, a bigger audience, and invite people to share our culture with them,” said festival founder Haylove Hadchiti.

“During the festival days, we are going to watch a lot of movies, short films as well, and documentaries, we have discussions, interviews, and Q&A after each screening, and workshops as well included in the program.”

Organizers chose this year’s theme to highlight the importance of protecting the environment while celebrating art.

“We want to import and export the talent that is here and from there and bring them together because diversity brings out creativity,” said Patricia Chamoun, vice-president of the fest.

“The theme of the year is ‘Shouf Reserve’ in Lebanon, to showcase the nature that we have, it’s a treasure. So that’s the theme this year. And to preserve our nature, and that is something we can definitely relate to as Canadians here because we believe in environmentally friendly and also protecting our environment.”

The Al Shouf Cedar Nature Reserve is a protected area in Lebanon, the largest in the country, where natural resources are conserved.

Artists, influencers, and cinema lovers attended the opening ceremony in downtown Montreal. They say the festival showcases Lebanese talent in the film industry.

“It is really showing the culture and the vibes of the Lebanese people, especially in the countries were Lebanese have immigrated before. We are known as Lebanese to be creative, especially in the artistic side, and especially very important to shed the light on these productions that we have as Lebanese,” said Elsa Khalil, a Lebanese entrepreneur.

The Lebanese Film Festival in Montreal runs until Thursday.