Zahira’s Peace
By Rebecca Ransom

Washington- March 11 was supposed to be just another ordinary day for 21 year-old Zahira Obaya.

Zahira was on her way to work when a series of bombs ripped through rush-hour traffic in Madrid’s busy commuter railway – later called the worst terrorist attacks in Spain’s history.

“Zahira’s Peace”, a documentary by Oscar nominated filmmaker Nina Rosenblum and Emmy award winning writer Dennis Watlington, was recently screened at Marty’s Café in Washington Depot. The award-winning pair, who have close ties to the area, were on hand at the event for discussion with the audience and Mr. Watlington also signed copies of his book, “Chasing America: Notes of a Rock N’ Soul Integrationist”.

Against the backdrop of Spain’s unprecedented political upheaval and public outcry in 2004, the film chronicles Zahira’s struggle to rebuild her life after being horribly injured in the attacks.

The film so powerfully and accurately illustrated the collective mourning and trauma of the Spanish people that Spain’s major television station, Canal +, broadcast it nationwide on the first anniversary on the bombing in 2005. It also won the prestigious Cine Golden Eagle Award and the Bronze award at the Fire Island Film Festival. But, as Ms. Rosenblum expressed during a recent interview, she never originally intended to make this film – it was a desire to capture life as it spontaneously unfolded.
           
Ms. Rosenblum, who has traveled to Spain extensively since 1985, just happened to be in Spain for a film festival when the terrorist attacks occurred. “When I returned to my hotel room in the early hours of the morning (March 11), I turned on CNN and heard the breaking news. It was profoundly shocking; I had just filmed for 15 months inside NYU Downtown Hospital, the hospital closest to Ground Zero (the site of the Sept. 11 attacks), for a film ‘Code Yellow: Hospital at Ground Zero’. It was a devastating experience filming so many seriously injured people. I did not expect another disaster to happen the day after I arrived in Spain.”
           
 “I started filming the news off the TV because I sensed the significance of these events,” she said. A close friend, Spanish journalist Mercedes Goiz, who was friends with Zahira’s family, brought Ms. Rosenblum to visit the 21 year-old woman in the hospital.
           
“From the moment I set eyes on Zahira, I knew I had to make this film,” she said. “I understood that by sharing her most intimate tragedy, we could try to help the world understand the horrors of ‘collateral damage’ and fight for peace.”
           
Outrage over “collateral damage”- which, In Zahira’s case meant half her face destroyed- is what led the Spanish people to “overthrow” the government. As the film depicts, Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar, who supported the war in Iraq, allegedly lied to the public about the attacks. Initially, his administration blamed ETA, Basque separatists, for the bombings, only for it to be later disclosed that it was Al Queda.
           
In the film, peace protestors are shown pouring into the streets in the days after the attacks and days before the national elections. On March 14, the film shows, Mr. Aznar, the anticipated winner in the elections, was overwhelmingly ousted for anti-war candidate Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero.
           
“I’m not a very political person. I mean, I relish the opportunity to be a free agent and seek to judge people and events on individual, circumstantial merit,” said Mr. Watlington on the political aspects of the film. “But I can’t think of a more heinous (expression) than collateral damage. That just offended me so…to place human beings in that context is reprehensible.”
           
Though the movie does illustrate political events, Mr. Watlington emphasized, “we sought very much not to put a partisan stamp on it…there is no political slant other than to seek to represent this beautiful girl.”
           
But, the film is more than a documentation of the political and historical movements and drama of Zahira’s recovery. It is also a powerful love story – the love between Zahira’s family and the love between Zahira and her boyfriend, Julio.
           
On several occasions, Julio is seen cleaning Zahira’s wounds, washing her hair in the sink because she cannot get her face wet, and writing in his diary about their irrevocably changed relationship. Her family, too, is a constant presence in her recovery. Mr. Watlington said one of his favorite scenes in the film, is at Zahira’s first birthday party after the bombings. “Perhaps it lends itself to being a parent,” said Mr. Watlington, a father of three. “I can’t imagine how her mother must have felt with her arms around her that day, knowing how close she came to never being able to embrace her again.”
           
“Zahira’s Peace” has been invited to be screened at the Norfolk Public Library in November, and plans are in the works for another showing at the Berkshire School later this year.

Marty’s Café Film Series

“Zahira’s Peace” is the first in a series of “film fests” at Marty’s Café.
           
Barbara Gold, who co-operates Marty’s Café with Blane Withers, said they are doing the “film fests” for “the same reason we have the art gallery (in the café).” “The Café has become a bit of a salon, not only are there the basics – coffee, food etc., but it’s a place for people to meet and greet and be stimulated…It’s like going to a museum, just a different medium.”
           
One of the keystones missions of Marty’s Café, which opened this spring, is to provide the community with a inviting environment for dining, socializing, and intellectual and artistic stimulation. So far, it’s clear Ms. Gold and Mr. Withers have successfully met that goal.
           
The screening of “Zahira’s Peace”, which was held under a white tent on the Café’s front lawn, met rave reviews with the audience. Ms. Gold shared that after the event, she received numerous emails from delighted patrons. In light of the overwhelming response, Ms. Gold said they have scheduled another “film fest” for Friday, September 8, featuring a collection of the world’s best short films by Asbury Shorts of New York.
           
Similar to “Zahira’s Peace”, Asbury Shorts will expose local audiences to great films rarely ever seen by general audiences. “These are things you could never get your hands on, you would never get to see in a movie theater,” said Ms. Gold.
           
Ms. Gold said they are trying to make the films screened “very varied”- everything from emotional documentaries like “Zahira’s Peace” to comedy and drama of the films included in Asbury Shorts.
           
For more information on Marty’s Café or the upcoming film screening and tickets for the event, please visit www.seeyouatMartys.com, or call (860) 868-1700.