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Ist’imariyah: Windward between Naples and Baghdad (Ist’imariyah: Controvento tra Napoli e Baghdad) by Michelangelo Severgnini. Italy, 2006, 90 min, MiniDV
“Dear Alessandro: After months of silence, I’m writing you to tell you a secret. Yes, I have been in the Iraqi resistance.” Thus reads an email from Shadi, a young Syrian man, to a radio journalist in Naples. Other messages follow from similar young activists from the Middle East, who share their secrets, their memories, their dreams, eventually forming a portrait of a “windward” generation, blown between contradictions and hope in an unending state of war. With its hip soundtrack and mixed documentary-action style, this film rides the line between grassroots political engagement and art, to make an informative and entertaining comment on the forces of ist’imariyah—colonialism—in the Middle East.
Preceded by: 3,494 Houses and One Fence, by Mireille Astore. Lebanon/Australia, 2006, 6 min, BetaSP
Fri, Nov 9, 2:00 P.M.
Sun, Nov 11, 7:00 P.M. Q&A with director Michelangelo Severgnini
Filmmaker's Biography
Born in Crema, Italy, in 1974, Michelangelo Severgnini completed his first documentary film, The Return of Aarch: The Villages of Kabilia Shake, Algeria, in 2002. In 2004 he shot his second film, …And the Tigris Placid Flows…: Portraits from Occupied Baghdad, earning Severgnini several awards at Italian film festivals. The film was accompanied by a book. Since 2004, he has worked on the Italian TV program Cosi’ è la vita, about Italian society. Ist’imariyah is his third independent film. He lives in Rome but more often roams on the road.
Festivals and Awards
- Prix International du Documentaire et du Reportage Méditerrannéen, 2006
- Dialëktus Fesztivál, Budapest, Honorable Mention, 2007
- Naples Film Festival, 2007
- DocuDays Beirut International Documentary Film Festival, 2007
Credits
Writer: Alessandro di Rienzo, Michelangelo Severgnini
Producer: Peacereporter.net
Cinematographer: Michelangelo Severgnini
Editor: Michelangelo Severgnini
Sound: Michelangelo Severgnini
Print Source
Michelangelo Severgnini
Tel: +39 328 355 1830
Email: metissart@virgilio.it
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