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CinemaEast Spring Series 2008 Presenting a New and Exciting Season of Films
January 30 - April 16, 2008
ArteEast, the Department of Middle Eastern & Islamic Studies and the Kevorkian Center at New York University are pleased to present a new season of films from the Middle East and its diasporas. The Spring season opens with an all-time 1944 classic of Egyptian cinema lovingly restored by Rotana TV, Love and Revenge. One of the earliest masterpieces of the Egyptian screen, the film is usually known for the tragic death of its star Asmahan before its completion. A special guest of CinemaEast this season is Swiss video artist Ursula Biemann, who will be presenting her award-winning work – Sahara Chronicle, a video collection documenting the present sub-Saharan exodus towards Europe and the interdependence of migrations with international politics of mobility. Recently selected and restored by Martin Scorcese and the World Cinema Foundation, Trances by Ahmed El Maanouni, a captivating exploration of the musical group Nass El Ghiwane, will be the focus of our March program. The season concludes in April with Caught in Between Two Worlds and Voices, highlighting the work of directors Persheng Sadegh-Vaziri and Simin Farkhondeh about the experiences of being Iranian in the United States today.
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Love and Revenge (Gharam wa-intiqam)
by Youssef Wahby (Egypt, 1944, 70 min, DigiBeta)
January 30, 2008
One of the earliest masterpieces of the Egyptian screen, Love and Revenge is usually known for the tragic death of its star Asmahan before its completion. A stunt double was used for some of the unfinished scenes and the ending was changed to mirror the star’s death. When Wahid, the fiancée of the beautiful singer, Suheir, played by Asmahan, is killed on the eve of their wedding, she vows revenge. More
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Sahara Chronicle
By Ursula Biemann (Switzerland, 2006/7, Mini DV)
New York Premiere including Artist Presentation
February 29, 2008
For the first time in New York, Ursula Biemann presents Sahara Chronicle, a video collection documenting the present sub-Saharan exodus towards Europe and the interdependence of migrations with international politics of mobility. The videos (to include Desert Truck Terminal, Interview Adawa, Tuareg Border Guides, Iron Ore Train and Deportation Prison Laayoune) show the major gates and nodes of the trans-Saharan migration network in Morocco, Niger, and Mauritania. Sahara Chronicle is part of The Maghreb Connection, an exhibition and research project directed by Biemann involving activists, scholars, and artists who live in different Mediterranean countries. More
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Trances (El Hal)
by Ahmed El Maanouni (Morocco, 1981, 86 min, DigiBeta)
New York Premiere Co-sponsored by the World Music Institute.
March 31, 2008
Recently selected and restored by Martin Scorcese and the World Cinema Foundation, Trances is a captivating exploration of the musical group Nass El Ghiwane, which consists of five Moroccan musicians who decided to break with the invading "oriental languors." Through their songs, the film speaks about traditional social themes but also the great contemporary questions that gave voice to a musical explosion that constitute the shout of their desires, frustrations and revolt for the young generation. More
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Caught Between Two Worlds
by Persheng Sadegh-Vaziri and Simin Farkhondeh (USA/Iran, 2007, 58 min, MiniDV)
April 16, 2008
Many Iranians left their country to seek refuge abroad in the events leading up to and following the 1979 revolution and birth of the Islamic Republic with some settling in the U.S. Alongside the usual challenges of engaging with a new culture and language, these Iranian immigrants have also had to deal with the traumas of revolution, the hostage crisis, and more recently, post 9/11 realities. Punctuated by the hip-hop inspired poetry of Iranian-American writer Sahar, this powerful documentary addresses the challenges of Iranian life in the U.S., offering a rich tapestry, unraveling layer upon layer of meaning to the experience of what it is like to be 'caught between two worlds.' More
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