April 13, 2006
Palestinian Cinema
The Guardian's Xan Brooks (What kind of a name is Xan? A cool name, that's what) interviews several Palestinian filmmakers about their work, and their challenges.
Feted by the critics and public alike, Palestinian cinema remains a culture in exile, an industry without a home. "Let me tell you about the Palestinian film industry," says actor-director Mohammed Bakri, who made the documentary Jenin, Jenin after the demolition of the refugee camp. "Very simply, we do not have one. We have some very talented film-makers, but that's about it. We have no film schools and we have no studios. We have no infrastructure because we have no country."And yet, Palestinians directors still manage to release films, somehow. Read the full article here.From the sound of it, they have no distribution network either. "There is one cinema in Ramallah, and nothing anywhere else," Bakri says. "And this is probably the biggest problem. We are not reaching the people we are talking about. For me it's very painful, because obviously I want my people to see my films." The irony is clear: visitors to the Palestine film festival in London will have had greater access to Palestinian films than the vast majority of Palestinians.
Thanks to David for the link.
posted by Laila Lalami at 12:00 AM
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