Winner, Jury Grand Prize, 2009
The Time That Remains – Palestinian Territories / France / Italy / Belgium / UK
Directed by Elia Suleiman
The Time That Remains is a semi-autobiographical film, in four historic episodes, about a family – Elia Suleiman’s family – spanning from 1948, until recent times. Set almost entirely in Suleiman’s hometown of Nazareth, the film is inspired by his father’s diaries of his personal accounts, starting from when he was a resistance fighter in 1948, and by Elia’s mother’s letters to family members who were forced to leave the country. Combined with his intimate memories of them, The Time That Remains attempts to portray the daily life of those Palestinians who remained in their land and were labelled ‘Israeli-Arabs’, living as a minority in their own homeland.
“The Time that Remains is a film that moved me greatly to hear a whisper through the cracks of that incredible wall that they have built around these people and to see such eloquence and to see such dignity in the face of this leviathan killing machine that is the modern army. I’ve never seen anything like that.” – Aden Young
“The Time That Remains really impressed me. Everyone on the jury was very emotionally engaged by this film in different ways. I found it a very moving story that had many surprises for me. It is a very courageous and beautiful film with some magic moments that will stay in my mind forever … like the tank tracking the young man pacing while making a phone call. Great cinema.” – Andrew Pike
The Asia Pacific Screen Academy expresses its respect for and acknowledgement of the South East Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. We pay our respects to the Traditional Owners of country, including the custodial communities on whose land works are created and celebrated by the Asia Pacific Screen Awards. We acknowledge the continuing connection to land, waters and communities. We also pay our respects to Elders, past and emerging. We recognise the integral role Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and First Nations peoples continue to play in storytelling and celebration spaces.
