Mai Masri is a U.S.

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

-educated Palestinian

Palestinian people

The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...

 filmmaker who has directed eight films.

Early life

Masri is the daughter of Munib Masri

Munib Masri

Munib al-Masri is a member of the Palestine Legislative Council and former Jordanian Cabinet Minister. During his term as cabinet minister he helped Yasser Arafat and his Fatah commanders escape Jordan during the Black September period....

 from Nablus

Nablus

Nablus is a Palestinian city in the northern West Bank, approximately north of Jerusalem, with a population of 126,132. Located in a strategic position between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, it is the capital of the Nablus Governorate and a Palestinian commercial and cultural center.Founded by the...

 and an American mother from Texas

Texas

Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

 who was raised in Beirut

Beirut

Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...

, where she has lived most of her life. She graduated from San Francisco State University

San Francisco State University

San Francisco State University is a public university located in San Francisco, California. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers over 100 areas of study from nine academic colleges...

 in 1981. Soon after that she returned to Beirut and began making films. http://www.facets.org/asticat?function=web&catname=facets&web=features&path=/directors/masrimai/interviewwithmasr

Masri met her future husband, the Lebanese filmmaker Jean Chamoun, in 1982. They have made several films together. They married in 1986, and have two daughters. http://www.facets.org/asticat?function=web&catname=facets&web=features&path=/directors/masrimai/interviewwithmasr

Her pictures focus on Palestine

Palestinian territories

The Palestinian territories comprise the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Since the Palestinian Declaration of Independence in 1988, the region is today recognized by three-quarters of the world's countries as the State of Palestine or simply Palestine, although this status is not recognized by the...

 and the Middle East

Middle East

The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...

 and have won awards at film festivals throughout the world.

Filmography

• 33 Days (2007)
• Beirut Diaries (2006)
• Frontiers of Dreams and Fears (2001)
• Children of Shatila (1998)
• Children of Fire (1990)
• Wild Flowers: Women of South Lebanon
  Lebanon
  Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
  
   (1986)

Article

• Mai Masri: Transcending Boundaries

External links

• Mai Masri at IMDb
• Mai Masri at "Dreams of a Nation", Columbia University
• Interview
• Dubai Women's College biography
• Mai Masri Palestinian Filmmaker
• Zenith Foundation website