Returning to his native city just months before the new millennium, filmmaker Hany Abu-Assad captures the daily, idiosyncratic beats of Nazareth - a unfolds both Christians and Muslims consider one of the most sacred in the world. Set against the background of the riots surrounding a square that both the municipality and the Muslim community lay claim to, Abu-Assad allows his story to unfold through the eyes of two cynical, funny and wise gas station attendants who have been working at the service station for decades. Their comments on the political and social conditions of their city paint both a tragic and subtle image of its inhabitants.

Hany Abu-Assad was born in Nazareth, Palestine, in 1961. After having studied and worked as an aeroplane engineer in the Netherlands for several years, Abu-Assad entered the world of cinema as a producer. He produced the 1994 feature film Curfew, directed by Rashid Masharawi. In 2005, he directed the often-debated film Paradise Now, which won the Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film, and was also nominated for the Academy Award in the same category (representing Palestine).

2001 | 55min

Language: Arabic with English Subtitles

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