EVENT DETAILS

The Light in Her Eyes film screening with Julia Meltzer and Laura Nix

The Department of Film and Media Studies would like to invite you to a screening of

THE LIGHT IN HER EYES

a documentary by Julia Meltzer and Laura Nix, 58 min, 2012

Houda al-Habash, a conservative Muslim preacher, founded a Qur’an school for girls in Damascus 30 years ago. Every summer, her female students immerse themselves in a rigorous study of Islam. A surprising cultural shift is under way—women are claiming space within the mosque. Shot right before the uprising in Syria erupted, The Light in Her Eyes offers an extraordinary portrait of a leader who challenges the women of her community to live according to Islam, without giving up their dreams.

An Official Selection of the 2011 International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA), the 2011 Dubai International Film Festival, and the 25th anniversary series of POV on PBS.

The filmmakers will be introduced by Professor Fatimah Tobing Rony of the Film and Media Studies Department at UC Irvine.

There will be a post-screening discussion with Hector Villagra, Executive Director the ACLU Los Angeles, and the directors, Julia Meltzer and Laura Nix, regarding women's rights in Islam and in the US.

This event is co-sponsored by the Film and Media Studies Department and partially funded by The Fledgling Fund.