In addition, if they wanted funding from a European co-producer, they could argue from a more powerful, self-confident position, because they would have experienced their own audiences' judgement. If this problem were to be solved, then Arab filmmakers could focus on their own audience without serving western clichés or adding extra explanations. Personally speaking, I am noticing more and more that the real problem is not European money that could be linked to a certain agenda, but the non-existence of Arab money and producers, and this is where Arab filmmakers should start trying to change things. Nor can a documentary filmmaker simply present a Palestinian family without immediately being asked by his producers: "And where is the Israeli family?" Why must the Israelis be ubiquitous? Also, when you are relating relationship stories, you are expected to show macho men and oppressed women, etc. You not only have to explain the basics, you also have to serve colonialist stereotypes like "Islam threw Lebanon – the former paradise of progressive Christians – back centuries." Arab viewers are bored and outraged by this.
This concerns mainly documentary filmmakers and becomes particularly obvious with subjects like Islam, Palestine or gender issues. When addressing a foreign audience you have to explain more, and with the so-called "clash of civilisations", the foreign audience expects the filmmaker to explain his culture. Raheb: Some Arab filmmakers accuse foreign producers of thinking only of their target groups, which ultimately affects the director’s own vision.
#Eliane raheb those who remain tv#
Al Jazeera has launched a documentary channel and intends to produce.īut until enough Arab funding exists, filmmakers will continue to turn to mainly European institutions like the Jan Vrijman Fund, the World Cinema Fund, the Hubert Balls foundation, the Fonds Sud … and seek co-production with European production companies and TV channels.Īt the same time, there is much criticism of European producers. The Egyptian Arab Radio and Television channel (ART) has, for example, brought in a program director solely to fund author movies. This might change soon as TV channels in the Arab region are multiplying and some of them seem interested in such films. There is some state money in a number of Arab countries like Morocco, Tunisia or Syria, but it is not enough. Raheb: The problem is the lack of Arab funding for these films. Nevertheless even this worldwide recognition – or worldwide trend - does not solve the funding problems faced by Arab independent cinema. At "Ayyam Beirut", we insist on debating them with their makers in order to understand their vision. Organisers and curators forget why most of these films are being made and the purpose of showing them. But the international audience is also interested in these films. This year we had about 10,000 visitors in little Beirut. Nevertheless, there is enough interest to make a success of "Ayyam Beirut" every two years. Raheb: Of course, author cinema can never financially compete with commercial films, most of which come from Egypt or Hollywood. How big is the audience’s demand for these movies? Sometimes the filmmakers become very narcissistic. This is an extreme example of the search for individuality. I am referring here to those installation- and performance-like short movies that, for example, repeat one specific phrase a hundred times. This is, for example, the case in The One Man Village by Simon al Habre or low-budget fiction films like Ein Shams by Ibrahim Battout.Īnother example is the boom in short experimental films, which began five years ago and proves the need for personal views. The truly authentic films are being made by filmmakers who express their individual vision of human beings with stories and experiences that seem unique to them and through which they question "reality". We have noticed that author cinema is one of the true and rare mirrors of our identity. But Arab societies are composed of individual characters.
Moreover, the mainstream culture of soap operas and such is only aiming at "society". The media also bombard us with numbers: "60 dead in Iraq", "30 killed in Palestine", etc. Hierarchical family structures rule us from above. Political discourse has traditionally emphasized the "Umma", the Arab community. Why?Įliane Raheb: The individual gets a raw deal in everyday discourse. Raheb, you describe author cinema as the mirror image of Arab identity.
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