A story of a city that once connected Palestine to the world: what it once was, what it is now, and what it could have become.
Lyd is a speculative documentary that follows the rise and fall of Lyd (alternatively Lod, as it is now called), a 5,000-year-old metropolis that was a bustling Palestinian town, until it was taken over by the state of Israel.
Residents create a tapestry of the Palestinian experience of this city and the 1948 massacre and expulsion. Vivid animations envision an alternate reality where the same people live free from the trauma of the past and the violence of the present.
Using never-before-seen archival footage of Israeli soldiers who carried out the massacre and expulsion, the film's personified city explains that these events were so devastating that they fractured reality, and now there are two Lyds: one occupied and one free.
"This film is an important document of time and should be screened widely. What makes Lyd stand out from other documentaries on this topic is the way the filmmakers audaciously weave together different forms of storytelling." — International Federation of Film Critics
"A cinematic achievement that breaks down the wide divide between documentary and science fiction." — The National
"It is a harrowing watch, but a vital one if the goal is gaining greater understanding the history of Israel-Palestine conflict." — ScreenHub
In Arabic and Hebrew, with English subtitles.
Join co-director Sarah Ema Friedland for a Q&A after the Monday, May 20 screening.
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