We Would Be Freer

At a glance

We Would Be Freer, is a 2023 Palestinian movie, directed by Rana Nazzal Hamadeh, and starring Linda Deer, Raya Ziada. with a runtime of 8 minutes.

Overview

We Would Be Freer is a poetic short film that meditates on the deep relationship between native plants and displaced peoples. Focusing on the sumac plant — native to parts of Turtle Island (North America) and the eastern Mediterranean, where it serves as medicine, spice, and dye — the film weaves together the voices of two women: one from the Mohawk community of Kahnawá:ke, and the other an internally displaced refugee living in Ramallah. Mirroring the progression of the sumac's flowers from yellow to green to red, the film becomes a cyclical reflection on land, sustainability, wild plants, and the quiet violence of displacement.

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