AFTER THE HOUR OF LIBERATION adapts its title from Heiny Srour’s 1974 film, The Hour of Liberation has Arrived, which captured the Marxist-Leninist rebellion against the British in the Dhofar region of Oman as it unfolded. In contrast, the films in this program document the afterlives of revolution; each revisits a resistance movement and centers the women—some infamous, others overlooked—who were at the forefront of these anticolonial struggles. Filmed decades later, freedom fighters from Algeria, Palestine, and Vietnam reflect on their role alongside their male counterparts, as well as their current circumstances and the temporality of liberation. In more recent video works by Marwa Arsanios and Huda Takriti, the artists examine the representations and imaginations of Djamila Bouhired and Leila Khaled respectively, unpacking the simultaneous celebration and marginalization of these women as they are transformed into icons.

AFTER THE HOUR OF LIBERATION is curated by Dina A. Ramadan and is co-presented by ArteEast and DCTV. This program is part of the legacy program Unpacking the ArteArchive, which preserves and presents 20 years of film and video programming by ArteEast. Selections from AFTER THE HOUR OF LIBERATION will be screened in-person at DCTV on February 10th followed by a discussion with Samah Selim moderated by the curator. For more information about the in-person screening visit firehousecinema.dctvny.org. The full program will be screened online on artearchive.org from February 11 - 21 2026.