''Scheherazade's Diary'' is a 2013 film directed by Zeina Daccache.

Synopsis

The women inmates of

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

Baabda Baabda () is the capital city of Baabda District and Mount Lebanon Governorate, western Lebanon. Baabda was also the capital city of the autonomous Ottoman Mount Lebanon that existed from 1861 to 1918. Baabda is home to the Italian, Japanese, ...

Prison relate their personal experiences and feelings about

patriarchy Patriarchy is a social system in which positions of authority are primarily held by men. The term ''patriarchy'' is used both in anthropology to describe a family or clan controlled by the father or eldest male or group of males, and in fem ...

as they prepare and present the first theatre performance staged inside an Arab women's prison. It was filmed during and after the ten-month 2012 drama therapy/theatre project in the prison. It features the women inmates. In the film, the women reveal stories of

domestic violence Domestic violence is violence that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes r ...

, traumatic childhood, failed marriage, unhappy romance and deprivation of motherhood. The film follows the women as they rehearse for the show and intermingles scenes from the live performance with testimonials and backstage antics.

Awards and nominations

*The FIPRESCI prize (International Critics Prize) Documentary category at the 10th Annual

Dubai International Film Festival The Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF, ) was the largest film festival in the Arab world, Arab region. With particular emphasis on showcasing Arab cinema, Arab, Asian cinema, Asian, and African cinema, it also helped to develop industry a ...

(Dec 6-14, 2013)

Dubai, United Arab Emirates Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...

. *The special mention prize in the Muhr Arab Documentary category at the 10th Annual Dubai International Film Festival (Dec 6-14, 2013). *The GOLD FIFOG award for the best documentary at FIFOG film festival

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

April 2014 *The Human Rights Award at FIDADOC film festival

Agadir, Morocco Agadir (, ; ) is a major city in Morocco, on the shore of the Atlantic Ocean near the foot of the Atlas Mountains, just north of the point where the Souss River flows into the ocean, and south of Casablanca. Agadir is the capital of the Aga ...

May 2014. *2014 URTI Grand Prix-Arman Trophy for Author's Documentary, June 2014,

Monaco Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...

. *Best Documentary Prize at the 11th edition of the Lebanese Film Festival, June 2014 *Al Araby TV Network Award, Malmo Arab Film Festival, September 2014 *The Special Mention at the 36th edition of Cinemed, International Mediterranean Film Festival of Montpellier, November 2014 *Best Arab Film Prize at the 36th edition of Cairo International film Festival on the 18th of Nov 2014 *Best Lebanese Motion Picture Soundtrack at the Lebanese Cinema Movie Guide Awards 2014

References

External links

* 2013 films Lebanese documentary films Documentary films about the penal system {{2010s-documentary-film-stub