The Lebanese Film Festival debuted in Sydney in 2012 and has now grown into a national arts and cultural event showcasing Lebanese cinema with the aim of programming films that present Lebanese storytelling to dispel misconceptions about Lebanon, its people, culture, and traditions.
The Lebanese Film Festival Australia is a volunteer based non-profit organisation with Australian Film icon Bryan Brown AM as the Patron. The Lebanese Film Festival has screened over 300 films from various parts of the world featuring Lebanese filmmakers from Lebanon, Europe, Africa, the Americas, Australia, and beyond.
This year the Lebanese Film Festival brings five films to Adelaide which will screen at Hoyts Norwood from 25 September to 8 October, they are:
A Sad and Beautiful World
Synopsis : Cyril Aris’ debut narrative feature is a love story set against decades of turmoil in Lebanon that continue today. Winner of multiple audience awards, including at Venice 2025.
Nino and Yasmina were born a minute apart in a Beirut hospital while bombs fell around them and became close childhood friends before tragic circumstances intervened. When fate throws them together decades later, Nino is an irresistibly charming optimist who owns a rowdy restaurant, while Yasmina is a cautious government consultant. Delightful rom-com shenanigans ensue as Nino pursues Yasmina, but in a place where gunfire, missiles and economic chaos are ever-present both must consider if there is any future for them in Beirut.
Disorder
Synopsis: an award-winning independent anthology from four of Lebanon’s most distinctive filmmakers – Lucien Bourjeily, Wissam Charaf, Bane Fakih and Areej Mahmoud.
Across four sharply observed stories, the directors blend biting satire, dark comedy and intimate drama to capture the absurdity, grief and resilience of a generation living through Lebanon’s collapse. Produced by internationally acclaimed creative partners Nadine Labaki and Khaled Mouzanar – the team behind the Cannes Jury Prize-winning and Academy Award-nominated Capernaum, Disorder made its world premiere at the El Gouna Film Festival, where it won the Cinema for Humanity Audience Award.
Liste De Marriage
Synopsis: Starring Rita Hayek and Carlos Azar, Liste de Mariage is a light-hearted Lebanese romantic comedy filled with humour, awkward encounters and unexpected chemistry.
When Lana reconnects with her former boyfriend, she finds herself pretending to be in a relationship with a mysterious stranger. What begins as a harmless lie soon becomes something neither of them anticipated.
A warm and entertaining celebration of love, second chances and the surprises that unfold when life refuses to follow the plan.
Fakebook
Synopsis: Abdo Chahine as police officer Rawad Fakhoury, is a father driven to extraordinary lengths to save his critically ill daughter. As time runs out and loyalties begin to fracture, Rawad is drawn into a dangerous world of deception, betrayal and impossible choices. A story of sacrifice, trust and betrayal.
Featuring an array of Lebanon’s soap opera stars and up and coming young talents of the industry, Fakebook is Middle Eastern melodramatic acting at its finest.
Patriarch Elias: God Will Provide
Synopsis : Recently beatified by the Catholic Church, Patriarch Elias Hoyek remains one of the most influential figures in Lebanon’s modern history.
Patriarch Elias – God Will Provide traces his remarkable journey from his childhood in the mountain village of Halta to his pivotal role in the creation of Greater Lebanon.
Combining dramatic re-enactments, archival footage, and interviews with historians and religious leaders, this inspiring faith-based docu-drama explores the life and legacy of the man widely regarded as the architect of Greater Lebanon, whose profound faith and trust help to shape both his ministry and the future of a nation.
More information about the Lebanese Film Festival and ticket details are available here:
