The Beirut Cinema Week was supposed to take place back in January and bring “together Lebanese cinema—professionals, investors, the intellectual and general audience”. Unfortunately, recent bombings in Lebanon have forced the organizers to postpone the event.

Here’s what Sabyl Ghoussoub, the director of the Lebanese Film Festival, had to say about that. [Interview]

Do you feel the security situation in Lebanon is stifling creativity?

No, the situation leads us to create more. It stimulates creation. The only problem is that investors do not follow, so many projects do not end.

Do you see any artists, film or otherwise, in Lebanon who are using the current situation as a way to express themselves?

Living in fear of a bomb exploding or in a permanent state of war makes us see life differently. There are many situations in Lebanon, artists who actually live here and artists from the diaspora who merely pass [through]. These are different experiences, different views, but their work is all in one way or another affected by the situation.