Table of Contents
- Welcome Note
04
- Foreward
05
- About the Royal Film Commission – Jordan
06
- About Sud Ecriture – Tunisia
07
- About Huston School for Film & Digital Media - Ireland
08
- Projects & Teams
09
AL-YASMINE - Ismahane Lahmar & Hanane Ben Mahmoud (TUNISIA)
10
HONEY CIGAR - Kamir Ainouz & Hassiba Belhadj (ALGERIA)
14
KILLING ETERNITY - Nour Halawani & Menna Ekram (JORDAN/EGYPT)
18
SHAKE - Deema Dabis & Tamara Abu Laban (JORDAN/PALESTINE)
22
THE SCRIPT IS READY (previously entitled CASTING) – Ahmad “Tarazan” Abo
26
Nasser & Mohammad “Arab” Abo Nasser & Rashid Abdel Hamid (PALESTINE)
THE TRANSLATOR (previously entitled THE SYTUATION) - Rana Kazkaz & Anas
30
Khalaf (SYRIA)
TWO ROOMS AND A PARLOR – Sherif Bendari & Racha Najdi (EGYPT
34
LEBANON)
UNTIL THE END OF TIME - Yasmine Chouikh & Karima Chouikh (ALGERIA)
40
- Med Film Factory Guests
44
- Med Film Factory Team
50
- Special Thanks
57
3
Welcome Note
Foreward
Dear Guests,
When the Royal Film Commission – Jordan, Sud Ecriture – Tunisia and the Huston School
of Film & Digital Media – Ireland came together in 2010 to conceive Med Film Factory,
none of them expected that this unique training program aimed at Arab producers and
directors would leave such a significant mark when it came to developing the skills of
filmmakers from the Middle East and North Africa.
It gives me great pride and pleasure to introduce Med Film Factory’s Independent Film
Assembly on behalf of the Royal Film Commission – Jordan.
Now in its third cycle, this unique training program, initiated in partnership with Sud
Ecriture, Tunisia and the Huston School of Film & Digital Media, Ireland and co-financed
by the Euromed Audiovisual Programme of the European Union, continues to give the
participating Directors and Producers guidance and insight towards completing their
feature length films.
Preceded by two workshops, first a coaching program for the Producers followed by a
hands-on training for the Directors, we are confident that the Independent Film Assembly
will create opportunities for the participants as well as for the industry guests.
Set this year against the amazing backdrop of the Dead Sea in Jordan, we hope that
this gathering will prove fruitful to you all, with new connections being made as well as
inventive cinematic pieces coming to life.
With my very best,
George David
General Manager
The Royal Film Commission- Jordan
After three cycles of Med Film Factory, this collaboration has matured into a well crafted
training program which has benefitted around 50 Arab producers and directors by
allowing them access to its three training sessions: the Producers’ Coaching Program,
the Directors’ Workshop and the Independent Film Assembly. This last session serves
as a networking platform enabling the participant teams to connect with producers,
distributors and financiers and take their projects towards realisation..
Out of the 24 film projects that went through the program, two films have been shot
and 6 more are in pre-production. Many of the participants have also developed their
individual success stories in the film industry thanks to their experience in Med Film
Factory.
It is with great pride that we look back at what we have achieved in these past four years.
We have learned how to overcome obstacles and to enhance the performance of the
program. This last year, with accumulated experience from the previous cycles, we have
led one of the most successful cycles of Med Film Factory.
Our appreciation and gratitude are extended to all the tutors, experts, guests, participant
directors and producers of all three cycles and to all our team, pedagogical and
administrative, who have contributed to make Med Film Factory a successful, beneficial
and enjoyable training program.
Wishing you all a great assembly,
Med Film Factory Team
4
5
About the Royal Film Commission - Jordan
About Sud Ecriture - Tunisia
The Royal Film Commission – Jordan (RFC) was established in July 2003 with a mandate to develop
an internationally competitive Jordanian audio-visual industry, position Jordan as an attractive
location by providing comprehensive production support services to local, regional, and international
productions, encourage Jordanians and people from the Middle East to tell their stories, build
capacities by providing training opportunities and promote film culture throughout the Kingdom.
The SUD ECRITURE workshops were founded in 1997 by Dora Bouchoucha with the
support of the French National Centre of Cinematography (CNC) and the International
Organisation of French Speaking Countries (OIF). Since then, Sud Ecriture has been
organising screenwriting workshops for authors of first or second fiction feature films
from Sub Saharan Africa, the Maghreb and the Middle East.
The RFC is a financially and administratively autonomous Jordanian Government organization, led by a
Board of Commissioners and chaired by His Royal Highness Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein.
Two eight-day sessions are conducted by renowned screenwriters during which five
to six authors work on their scripts, scene by scene with the interactivity of all the
participants and tutored by the pedagogical committee. Between the two sessions, the
authors have a nine to ten-week break in order to rewrite their scripts according to the
work done during the first session. During the second session, the scripts are further
developed in the same manner.
The RFC aspires to empower Jordanians to tell their stories through audio-visual tools. Hence, it
develops educational programs, which target the needs of different age groups and professional
levels. The annual Rawi Screenwriters’ Laboratory, in consultation with the Sundance Institute,
is an essential part of the Capacity Building program.
Acknowledging the need for specialized development programs for regional filmmakers, the RFC
initiated ‘Med Film Factory’ in partnership with Sud Ecriture, Tunisia and the Huston School of Film
& Digital Media, Ireland and co-financed by the Euromed Audiovisual Program of the European
Union. Med Film Factory is an annual program in three interrelated stages: a Producers’ Coaching
Program, a Directors’ Workshop and an Independent Film Assembly.
Regular workshops and seminars on various topics related to filmmaking are held regularly at the
RFC. Most of these activities take place in the Film House, an open space for audiovisual learning and
creativity. RFC film-club houses have been established in various Governorates across the Kingdom.
They are recreational edutainment spaces where young people, led by a mentor, are encouraged to
tell their stories through multimedia programs.
More than 150 scripts have now taken part in Sud Ecriture workshops, 65% of them
have been made or are in production, and several scripts have won awards and grants
in international festivals. Sud Ecriture is a label of quality for scripts today.
SUD ECRITURE
11 RUE MAMI
2070 LA MARSA – TUNISIE
Tel/fax: +216 71748255
www.sudecriture.net
sudecriture.nomadis@planet.tn
In 2009, the RFC developed the Educational Feature Film Program, whereby Jordanian filmmakers are
able to produce feature-length narrative films with a professional mentorship. Through this program,
five feature-length films – Transit Cities, The Last Friday, A 7 Hour Difference, When Monaliza Smiled
and Line of Sight - have been produced.
Screenings of international and Arab movies are organized regularly by the RFC to nurture the
audience’s taste for cinema. The RFC holds regular free-of-charge screenings of quality films that are
usually not shown in commercial theatres. Film directors or film critics are often present to introduce
and discuss the picture. Screenings are also organized in the twelve Governorates with local partners.
In an important move to support the film industry, the RFC established two years ago the Jordan
Film Fund which provides financial support to narrative, documentary and short films in their various
stages of development and production.
In addition to the above-mentioned activities, production services remain at the core of the work of the
RFC, by assisting local and foreign productions (location scouts, permits, cast and crew, etc.).
The RFC believes that film-making is a form of creative expression that transcends borders, through
the sharing of stories, thoughts and ideas. Jordan is a staunch supporter of Intellectual Property
Rights. The RFC is the first Middle Eastern member of the Association of Film Commissioners
International (AFCI) and is also a member of the Asian Film Commissions Network (AFCI-Net).
6
7
About the Huston School of Film & Digital Media – Ireland
The Huston School of Film & Digital Media was established in 2003 under the active
patronage of the Huston family. The School offers a pioneering suite of courses with a
single starting point, the role of cultural creativity. They combine the academic and the
vocational, theory and practice in professional programmes that focus, in the words of
President Michael D. Higgins, on “culture as central not residual”.
The programmes combine a dynamic approach to film and digital media training with
a rigorous film and critical studies. The programmes aim to develop highly creative,
excellently trained individuals to lead the film and television industries in the future. The
orientation and approach at the centre of the enterprise is:
• A critically informed creative practice
• The utilisation of digital technology at all stages of the production and postproduction
of film
• The development and production of micro budget documentary and fiction projects
Reflective practice and critical theory can be combined in the context of film-making.
Elements, which might be described as academic or theoretical, have practical value and
application. These disciplines can be integrated in exciting and meaningful ways that are
relevant to contemporary production. Our aim is to help filmmakers react critically and
constructively to the changes which are taking place in film. It is our intention to introduce
new writers and film-makers to the range of possibilities, creative choices and implications,
available to them. A non-normative exposition of the full range of international filmmaking
will allow course participants to develop their own distinctive voices.
Positioned between the divergent approaches of industrial and artisanal film-making,
we build enduring relationships with international programmes and networks. We
welcome the cross fertilisation of cultures and histories in the ‘contact zone’ of the
west coast of Ireland. The Huston School is well placed to explore complex and dynamic
terrain - digital versions of film at the beginning of the 21st century.
An integrated approach creates connections between our Master of Arts programmes:
Public Advocacy and Activism, Screenwriting, Arts Policy and Practice, Digital Media,
Film Studies Production and Direction.
Industry professionals who have visited include: Gabriel Byrne, Fionnula Flanagan,
Simon Perry, Seamus McGarvey, James Cromwell, John Boorman, Roddy Doyle, Colin
MacCabe, Laura Mulvey, Howard Rodman, Mike Figgis, Peter Sheridan, Liz Gill, Paddy
Breathnach, Alan Gilsenan, Maryann DeLeo.
The Huston School of Film & Digital Media participated in MEDA Films Development in
Marrakech from 2006-8, the IMAGINE FESPACO NEWSREEL workshops held in Ouagadougou
in 2009, 2011and 2013, BEYOND BORDERS in Djerba in 2010 and MFF in Amman from 2011.
For further information: www.filmschool.ie
8
PROJECTS & TEAMS
AL-YASMINE
Ismahane Lahmar / Hanane Ben Mahmoud - Tunisia
Writer/Director’s statement
I was born in France. When I was two years old, my mother gave me as a gift to my
grandmother who lived in Tunisia. Then, when I was eight, my mother came to Tunisia
and took me back to France.
The time I spent with my grandmother, my ‘Mamie’, changed me forever. She was a very
special woman: witty, pious, domineering and kind.
When she started to lose her mind, I felt really threatened. I knew something was going
to die inside me.
Synopsis
Donia has a strong relationship with her grandmother “Mamie” even though
they live in different countries. Donia is a jewelry designer in Paris; Mamie lives
in a small village in Tunisia where she raised Donia until the age of eight before
her parents took her back to Paris.
Mamie is a witty and strong person. Donia calls her at least once a week on the
neighbour’s phone as Mamie doesn’t want a phone in her own home. During
her last call, Donia realizes how much the old woman has lost her memory and
mixes things up.
I started working on the script Al Yasmine with the firm intention of immortalizing her
and I ended up with a script charged with a unique cultural identity.
I found out that I was not talking only about Mamie, but also about my beloved country,
Tunisia, and the danger it was facing of losing its values and traditions with the coming
to power of the Islamists after the revolution. The Islamist government represents a
disease infecting Tunisia just as Alzheimers was changing my grandmother.
In Tunisia, we face tragedy with humor; it is always the answer to cope with death,
disease or misfortune and our way of going on. We even have a national saying: “too
much tragedy makes one laugh”. This movie will be a dark comedy, using this tone.
Donia contacts her brother Othman who is in Tunisia. but has stopped calling
his family from the day that he left Paris. Othman is going through a deep
identity crisis and left his parents’ home in Paris because he hated the image
his mother gave him of himself. His repressed homosexuality leads him to find
refuge in religion. When Donia arrives in Tunis to check on Mamie, she finds out
that he dresses differently and has lost his sense of humor.
Mamie is losing her mind but not her personality. She is in good shape, her
humor is sharp and she still likes to dance. Things take a turn for the worse
during a neighbour’s wedding when Mamie was having fun until she wets
herself. After that, she loses her will to live.
Before leaving back for Paris, Donia pays Fatima to take care of her grandmother
and buys her a cell phone so that they can talk directly.
When her grand-daughter leaves, Mamie starts to let herself go: she stays in
bed all day where she prays and eats. Fatima brings food daily but Mamie hides
it under the bed as soon as the woman turns her back.
When she hears that Mamie is no longer going out and that she is keeping to
her bed, that same bed she had stopped using when her husband died, Donia
starts to worry seriously.
Writer/Director’s biography
Ismahane Lahmar was born in Paris in 1982. She
obtained her baccalaureate diploma in economics
in 2000. She graduated in filmmaking at the ESRA
(École Supérieure de Réalisation Audiovisuelle). A
series of short projects ensued, becoming her first
experience of the industry. In 2010, she decided
to go and live in Tunisia where the political havoc
changed her vision.
Ismahane directed two documentaries, Mon 14
and Enti Essout and two short fictions: Get Married, a satire of Tunisian bourgeoisie under
the Ben Ali’s presidency and Rainbow, about self-censorship. She is now working on
developing her first feature fiction film, Al-Yasmine.
The same night, Donia flies back to Tunis and is there to witness Mamie’s last
moments.
10
11
Producer’s statement
Financial Plan (in USD)
The project Al-Yasmine impressed me because of its topicality as well as the specifically
Tunisian angle it presents.
The touching quality of the relationship between granddaughter and grandmother across
two continents illustrates the difficulties faced by many Tunisian immigrants. Tunisia is
portrayed with lyricism and humanity far removed from the usual clichés that Western
audiences have come to expect. I opted for this script to counter the common tendency
to represent my country in a way that panders to the expectations of certain European
audiences.
I also happen to believe in Ismahane’s ability both to portray tenderness and truth between
these two characters and also to depict the multifaceted richness of Tunisia.
I was pleased to produce her two shorts films and now I’m very happy to begin this new
adventure with her.
‫ ‏‬he majority of the equity for the project has been secured. The project will
T
be a combination of Equity, Public Funding and Grant Support.
Source
Amount ($)
%
Status
Producer
Aide aux Cinemas du Monde
CNC
Presale and MG
Blow Up Films
Enjaaz
Francophonie OIF
Tunisian Ministry of Culture
Sorfond (Co-producer - Norway)
117 427
207 225
11 052
124 335
38 682
115 125
55 260
345 375
38 682
10%
17%
1%
10%
3%
10%
5%
29%
3%
Producer’s share
Will apply
Will apply
Will apply
Will apply
Will apply
Will apply
Will apply
Will apply
TOTAL
1191 313 $
Producer’s biography
Hanane began her career in Tunisia as assistantdirector on numerous well-known international
productions with directors such as Jerry Schatzberg,
Roman Polanski, Franco Zeffirelli and Serge Moati,
and on several Tunisian films directed by Moncef
Dhouib, Férid Boughedir or Raja Amari. She also
contributed to the production of more than a hundred
commercials and music videos for television.
She was also artistic director on several films.
In 1996, Hanane directed a weekly cultural
program on Canal+ Horizons, and two documentaries; Kharja de Sidi Bou Saïd (Canal
+Horizons) and Ghadames, La Perle du Sahara (TV5), the latter having been chosen among
the ten best documentaries in 2002.
Since then, Hanane has worked with Audimage and Cercina Films, where she has had the
opportunity to further strengthen her production skills. She has now joined the production
company Blow up Films.
12
Contact Info
Ismahane Lahmar
Writer/ Director
Address: 97 Avenue des Jardins de la Sokra, Tunis, Tunisie
Telephone: (00216) 55 878 015
Email: ismahanelahmar@gmail.com
Website: www.ismahanelahmar.com
Hanane Ben-Mahmoud
Producer
Address: 8 Avenue du 14 Janvier, 2026 Sidi-Bou-Saïd Tunisie
Telephone: (00216) 21 266 245 or (00216) 98 648 396
Email: hananebenmahmoud@yahoo.fr
13
HONEY CIGAR
Kamir Ainouz / Hassiba Belhadj - Algeria
Synopsis
Paris, France, 1993 - Selma, 17, hates her chubby body as much as she loves
indulging in her favorite pastry, the ‘honey cigars’ made by her grandmother.
Born to Algerian parents and raised in France, she grows up in Neuilly-surSeine, a conservative suburb of Paris. Her father, Mohamed, is a successful
entrepreneur. Her sophisticated mother, Jalila, is a cardiologist who quit her
job to raise Selma and her little brother Reda.
Under the polished surface of their privileged life, tensions boil. Jalila holds
Mohamed responsible for making her quit her job and in also her self-realization.
The mask she has been putting on for years is starting to crack. Selma is the
daily witness of their growing estrangement. Meanwhile, with the raging of
her adolescent hormones, her sexuality awakens. Her desire, thwarted by an
education that forbids any close contact with boys, invades her body increasingly
every day. Selma is frustrated and upset when she gets to her cousin Nadia’s
traditional wedding, only to understand that she’s the one now who should be
thinking about marriage. Even though she hasn’t had a boyfriend yet and is only
about to enter college, she feels trapped. And so she eats, to calm her frustration.
Everything that Selma feels, she hides carefully. Boys and feelings are never to
be discussed at home, especially at a time when her home country, Algeria, is
torn by a civil war with Islamic fundamentalism on the rise after the cancellation
of democratic elections. When Selma goes to Algeria to visit her grandmother,
the only person she can confide in, she can see and feel brutality of the conflict
for herself. Love is nothing compared to war. Consequently, Selma behaves
like an obedient girl when in the presence of her family. But at school, she
frees herself and pretends to be even more sexually liberated than her French
girlfriends. She naturally adapts to every situation, but deep inside, she hates
the hypocrisy that she fuels herself with her dissembing.
Until the moment she meets Max, a boy in his first year in college, who sees
right through her – not only through her lies and deceptions but through her
soul and her body. Under Max’s gaze and touch, Selma’s sexuality explodes. Her
feminine body and mind take shape. The feeling of empowerment that pervades
her not only shatters the fragile imbalance of power between her parents but has
profound repercussions all the way to her home village in Algeria.
14
Writer/Director’s statement
Just like Selma, the protagonist of Honey Cigar, I have struggled with my sexuality
and felt very lonely in that struggle. How to go from total interdiction to complete
freedom in the course of one day, every day? How to find yourself in this constant
contradictory journey?
To me, sexuality crystallizes the pull between different cultures, religions and
societies. Women’s sexuality in particular, in that denying the control of our body –
its behavior, its appearance, its role – denies us an active role in the world. As the
conscience of Selma’s body and the power of her sexuality develop, the political
conscience of her prominent place in society as a woman develops as well.
Honey Cigar is the story of the sexual awakening of a teenage girl, in an environment
that is not at all ready for it. As Selma braves oppression and connects with her
body and mind, she also connects with a power that automatically fires back at
the very communities that oppressed her, without rage or violence but with the
assertiveness of those who are in command of themselves.
In my view, until Muslim women gain absolute control over their bodies, revolutions
will pass and Arab societies will fall back into obscurantism. With Honey Cigar, I
wanted to chronicle the story of a shift - a story of empowerment, of change, of a
meaningful, day-to-day revolution. It is possible. Or so I’d like to convince myself.
Writer/Director’s Biography
Born and raised in Paris of Algerian parents,
Kamir Aïnouz studied screenwriting at UCLA
and attended directing at workshops at USC in
Los Angeles. Since 2008, she has worked as
a screenwriter on mainstream feature films,
including the American remake of the French
comedy LOL (2012) and the adaptation of Camilla
Läckberg’s bestselling Swedish novel The Ice
Princess for French studio UGC. In 2013, Kamir
directed Musul-Woman, a feature documentary
shot in France and Algeria that is currently in post-production. Honey Cigar is her first original
screenplay.
15
Producer’s statement
Like Kamir, I am French-Algerian. Like Kamir, I’ve lived in the different worlds portrayed
in Honey Cigar, with violence and disgust. Because of the feeling that my mind and body
could not live together, as a teenager I ended up creating my own universe, which I
hid from others - my family, friends, boyfriends and colleagues. In two words: lies and
schizophrenia. This was yesterday, yet, I am still lying.
The singularity of Selma’s story, of Kamir’s and mine, meets other stories because
Kamir describes something that concerns every woman, at one point or another, or
during a long time in their lives: sexuality. Our body is a battlefield. It is enough to look at
the Femen or Miley Cyrus’ shows on stage to realize the extent to which we are still lying
here, wondering if our body can talk to our mind, always taking our sexuality and our
body further, sacrificing it in private or in public, as if we didn’t have any other means to
express ourselves.
The force of Honey Cigar is also and foremost, Kamir: the nakedness of the tone and the
power of the speech she uses in her documentary Musul-Woman will also be the force of
Honey Cigar.
Financial Plan (in Euros)
Source
Amount ($)
%
status
Crossoverprod French company
CNC (ASR) + Media l2I
Region IDF
Sofica
TV coproduction France 2
French pre-sales financing
(sales agent +TV +VIDEO)
Alegria (Algerian coproducer)
Algerian public Fund
Algerian Sponsor (TP MARINE...)
Sanad – AFAC –HUBERT BALS FUND
250125
390 000
230000
110 000
250 000
315 000
14%
22%
13%
6%
14%
18%
expected
expected
expected
expected
expected
expected
50 000
84678
29 000
42500
3%
5%
2%
2%
expected
expected
expected
expected
Total
1 751 303 €
100%
I am working with Kamir in these last stages of the script development. It is a determining stage.
Today, thanks to Med Film Factory, the feedback we got on the script and enthusiasm
that it triggers, I am able to say that Honey Cigar already has an audience.
At this stage, we’ve had international interest in the form of a development grant from
the Doha Film Institute, a grant from the Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Arts, and
selections to the Rawi/Sundance Institute Screenwriters’ Lab and Sud Ecriture.
Contact Info
Producer’s biography
Hassiba Belhadj is an Algerian filmmaker and
producer, who graduated in 2004 from the
European Institute of Cinema and Audiovisual in
France, where she directed and produced several
short films, including Dignity, a portrait of her
grandfather during the Algerian independence war.
For 9 years, she worked as a line producer on
more than 30 films internationally. The artistic
and creative qualities of these films have been awarded at Sundance, the Berlinale,
Venice and Vision du Réel among other festivals. She joined Crossoverprod in 2012,
an independent film company based in Paris to produce My eyes for my friend by Ula
Tabari and Honey Cigar by Kamir Ainouz.
She is also finalizing her feature documentary as a director, entitled Walou.
16
Kamir Ainouz
Writer/Director
Address: 203 Avenue Achille Peretti,
92200 Neuilly-sur-Seine, France
Telephone: +33 6 33 06 64 00
Email: kamir.ainouz@gmail.com
Hassiba Belhadj
Address: 6 bis, rue Baudelique, 75018 Paris, France
Telephone: +33 6 20 31 81 73
Email: belhadj.hassiba@gmail.com
17
KILLING ETERNITY
Nour Halawani / Menna Ekram - Jordan/Egypt
Synopsis
Killing Eternity is the story of the separation between what you know and what
you have always taken for granted - your own existence.
It tells the story of Salam and Leila, two souls who think they are all alone in
a limbo between life and death and have no access to any kind of interaction
with other beings. They meet in a moment of utter desperation in their troubled
existences. When they realize they are not completely alone, they start to
believe that there might be a way out of the everlasting loop of existence in
time.
Their companionship makes them realize that they have boundaries to push;
that they both complement and nourish each other’s need to live.
Co-writer/Director’s statement
Killing Eternity is the story of two spirits stuck in time but not in space. That fantastic premise has echoes with me on two important levels: personally, we all feel
sometimes that we are stuck, not in a prison or physically, but stuck in our heads;
and politically, as I come from a region that is stuck in time, with a glorious past but
with no present and a very vague future.
This story is a chance for me to tell the story of how Salam and Liela try to overcome their limitations to reach a resolution, which, in their case, is death. For me,
it is also a story that inspires me visually and provokes me to come up with an atmosphere that conveys what the film is really about in an artistic way: we deal with
landscapes; the landscape of the city, the massive mobility that also encompasses
being imprisoned, a canvas of humans moving in a space unaware of the existence
of Salam and Leila.
My inspiration is Shady Abdel Salam’s masterpiece The Mummy where in every
sequence he uses many layers of image background, foreground, texture and
variation. I want to play on that kind of canvas. Salam and Leila will be the fading
palette of colors in a city that’s crisp, present and busy.
This is a film about two expats in a community of alienation towards expats, though
ironically many of its people are expats themselves from many circumstances and
origins.
This is a story of self-exploration in a city that has a mixed identity and many
borders within itself. Amman along with Salam and Leila are the backbone of
a story about who we really are and what we are capable of doing to survive
when inspired.
Co-writer/Director’s biography
Menna graduated from the Faculty of Mass
Communication at Cairo University. She holds
a Professional Diploma in Film Subtitling from
the American University in Cairo and also has
an MFA in Cinematic Arts from The Red Sea
Institute of Cinematic Arts (RSICA) affiliated
with the University of South California’s Film
School, majoring in Screenwriting and Editing.
She worked as a journalist, TV producer and
freelance writer of short fiction films, documentaries and TV series. She wrote over 10
short films and three feature scripts to date and is currently in post production of her
short film, The Wheel.
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19
Writer/Producer’s statement
The project started as a co-writing collaboration, but I was so excited and taken by the story
that I was able to write a first draft on my own, a draft that I think reflects my essential
interests as a writer. I then joined forces with Menna as a co-writer/director to work on
the second draft. In this draft I chose to protect the story and to step away as a writer and
become the producer.
As a producer it’s not only my role to make sure that this film is made and realize on screen,
but also to have a creative input and to help the director in her process so we can make the
best film possible and to convey the message we are both passionate about.
This is a film which I see as a clear chance to say who we are and where we really come
from. It’s a film about potential and what we are capable of achieving with companionship
and under extreme circumstances, which somewhat resembles our situation as aspiring
filmmakers from the Middle East.
Financial Plan (in USD)
Source
Amount ($)
%
Status
FireFly Productions
DFI’s MENA Grants (Production)
SANAD Post Production Fund
AFAC Cinema Fund
Sponsors
111,693
100,000
50,000
50,000
18,444
35.1%
27.7%
15.7%
15.7%
5.8%
Producer’s Contribution
Will apply
Will apply
Will apply
To be raised
Total
330,137
Writer/Producer’s biography
In 2010, Nour earned his B.Sc. in Computer
Graphics and Animation from Princess Sumaya
University of Technology (PSUT), where his
animated short film ranked 1st in his promotion.
In 2012, Nour graduated from The Red Sea
Institute of Cinematic Arts (RSICA) with an MFA in
Cinematic Arts, majoring in Producing and Sound.
Nour produced a couple of short films since
2011; Cold water, a 6 minute fiction, and Song of Silence, a 12 minute fiction.
Contact Info
Nour Al Halawani
Writer/Producer
Address: Amman, Jordan
Telephone: +962 79 9197460
Email: nourhalawani@me.com
Menna Ekram
Co-writer/Director
Address: 6th of October city – 5th
district – building 212 – apartment 3
Telephone: 002 - 01223306361
Email: menna.ekram@gmail.com
As sound engineer, Nour also worked on a number of local short film productions
including recording sound for the short film Ismail, directed by Nora Al-Sherif and The
Sri Lankan, directed by Deema Dabis. Nour was the sound designer for the short film The
Dark Outside, directed by Darin Sallam, winner of best short film of the 18th Franco Arab
film festival in Jordan, and 1st prize at the Pentedattilo Film Festival 2012 in Italy.
Nour is now the owner of a small production and distribution company, FireFly Production
& Distribution, based in Amman, Jordan.
20
21
SHAKE
Deema Dabis / Tamara Abu Laban - Jordan/Palestine
Synopsis
The free-spirited Kareemah decides to finally pursue her lifelong dream of performing in a circus when she takes the offer to travel to Palestine with a world
touring circus troop. As a Palestinian who grew up in America completely sheltered to the realities of life under occupation and the trauma of her family’s
past, Kareemah has an experience she couldn’t possibly have imagined.
While she struggles to manage her insecurities as a first time performer, she is
continuously shaken up and shocked by the many complexities of life and reality in Palestine. The first shock starts with her interrogation at Tel Aviv airport,
the first time she has experienced discrimination on an official level. As soon as
she enters Palestine she meets the warm hearted Margo, a charismatic widow
who lives on land that the Israeli state wants to take for its own use.
She forms an immediate bond with Margo and their friendship evolves as Kareemah learns more about her culture, her history and the inner strength she
never knew she had. The circus troop tours around the West Bank and is continuously challenged by checkpoints, soldiers, settlers, tear gas and the fragmentation and insecurities of Palestinian society as they meet various communities, characters and activists along the way. Kareemah finds herself feeling
completely at home and completely out of place at the same time.
She also meets the dynamic Mohamad who understands her on a level that
perhaps no one in her entire life has before. They form an immediate bond and
her feelings about him are abundantly clear. Kareemah begins to realize that
she has a vision of her own and that she wants to create that vision in Palestine,
so she decides to leave her life in L.A. behind to live in Palestine and start another circus troop there.
She is further shaken up when Mohamad is deported and finally Margo’s kitchen is imminently threatened with demolition. Her dreams become more and
more vivid with images of shaking and things falling apart. The last remnant of
her stability is broken when Margo’s kitchen is demolished and Kareemah is
deported to the U.S., thus forcing her to look within for what home truly means
to her on a deeper level.
22
Writer/Director’s statement
Just as the word ’Intifada’ means to ’shake free’, this is a story about a character in
the midst of an internal intifada. As Kareemah seeks to find stability in her life, she is
constantly shaken up and broken apart. In the end she is forced to seek within for the
deeper meaning of home and what it means to find one.
Being a Palestinian in America, my trip to Palestine, living there for a couple of months,
was a profound experience on many levels and the insights that come from this experience are what I seek to express in this story. As a Palestinian it is easy to fall into being a
perpetual victim and feel completely helpless, this is one woman’s journey in overcoming
this and finding out how she can free herself from her own self-limiting state of being.
Kareemah’s friendship with Margo and the image and symbolism of Margo’s home and
its eventual destruction plays a vital role in the changes which happen within the main
character. This film will take the audience through the vehicle of the circus on a visually
absurd, strikingly beautiful and deeply painful journey where all of our expectations will
slowly be shaken and discarded.
Through a contrast of colors and images, we will be aware of the internal state of our
main character. The surrealist dream/nightmares will take us deeper into understanding her internal journey and the transformation she experiences. The visceral humanity
and vulnerability of the main character in addition to her encounters will help us find
deeper understanding of this experience that so many people will be able to relate to in
our current global context.
Writer/Director’s biography
With a BA in Journalism and an MFA in Cinema
from the Red Sea Institute of Cinematic Arts
focused in writing and editing, finding new ways
of engaging with media and telling stories has
always been a passion for Deema Dabis. From
a young age, she has been in love with stories
and believes fiercely in the power of creation
and a new vision that will not only bring healing
and insight into our world, but also has the
potential to create alternative narratives and realities.
She is currently working on a number of projects that include finishing her first short
film The Sri Lankan, which received a grant from the Jordan Film Fund. She is also
developing two film projects, Swimming Over Jordan and Shake, which was accepted
into Med Film Factory, an advanced training program for Arab producers and directors.
Deema is also a co-founding collective member and directing manager of the Fajr
Falestine Film Collective.
23
Producer’s statement
When I read Shake for the first time, I felt as if I had met the characters before and
experienced the situations. For me, it is very important to show Palestinian women
not as weak and passive but as strong individuals. Moreover, there is the metaphorical
concept of the mother Margo that welcomes her people, which is like Palestine opening
her arms to welcome all the diaspora who live scattered around the world...
I have worked before on short films in Egypt, Jordan and Palestine in many roles along
the production line including producer, director, assistant director, writer among others
and I feel confident producing this film.
We are currently in the script development stage, Deema is rewriting the 4th draft of
Shake and I am concentrating on raising funds so that we can move on to the next step.
of realizing the film.
Financial Plan (in USD)
Source
Amount ($)
%
Status
(GIZ) Gesellschaft für Internationale
Zusammenarbeit
Bank of Palestine
Netherlands representative office –Palestine
Crowd Funding
Doha film institute
Arab Fund for Arts & Culture (AFAC)
30,000 $
13%
In progress
20,000$
15,000$
15,000$
100,000$
50,000$
8.5%
6.5%
6.5%
43.5%
22%
In progress
In progress
Not Secured
Not Secured
Not Secured
Total
230,000$
I believe deeply in this film and I feel that it comes from our reality.
Producer’s biography
Tamador ‘Tamara’ Abu Laban was born and grew
up in Dheisheh refugee camp near Bethlehem.
This rich cultural environment taught her how to
resist in different ways. This experience, although
very hard because of the difficult circumstances,
jump-started her creativity and made her think of
all the stories that can be told under occupation.
and how she can tell people about them.
Tamador studied media in Egypt, where she
also gained experience working in large-scale cinema productions there, learning from
important directors such as Mohammad Khan. She received her Master’s degree in
producing from the Red Sea Institute of Cinematic Arts in Jordan where she studied and
worked in collaboration with students from countries in the Middle East.
Contact Info
Deema Dabis
Writer/Director
Address: Amman, Jordan.
Telephone: +962 79 7511391
Email: deemadabis@yahoo.com
Tamara Abu Laban
Producer
Telephone: +972 598032349
Email: tamaraabulaban@gmail.
com
Tamador established a production company with her friends, producing many short films.
She is now producing and directing a TV series for the Ramadan Season in 2014.
Her dream is to make films that tell real stories about Palestinians far from mainstream
media that tends to distort the reality and deals with Palestinians as mere numbers
and nothing more. She hopes to reveal stories of strong women who resist all kinds of
oppression and who continue to grow.
24
25
Writer/Director’s statement
THE SCRIPT IS READY
(previously entitled CASTING)
Ahmad ‘Tarazan’ Abo Nasser & Mohammad ‘Arab’ Abu Nasser/
Rashid Abdel Hamid - Palestine
Synopsis
Khalil is an odd-man-out and a film director living in war-torn Gaza, where the
absurdity of life under constant threat of military attack has distorted culture and
pushed religion to conservative extremes. Faced with a society hostile to the arts, in
a land where cars don’t start, buildings take forever to be built and all the television
sets are fuzzy, Khalil struggles to develop his career as a filmmaker and his identity
as a human being, and he hasn’t paid his rent in months.
Encouraged by Hassan, a long-time friend and film producer, and his girlfriend
Wedad to keep chasing his dream, Khalil manages against steep odds to sustain his
belief that artists and intellectuals have something important to say. When a European film production company writes to express interest in his latest script, Khalil
knows this could be his only chance to see his film become a reality.
There’s only one problem. The Europeans want him at their headquarters soon in
order to meet with potential funders, and obtaining the necessary travel permits to
leave Gaza – not to mention the money to make the trip – is easier said than done
... especially when you’ve been tagged by the authorities as a dreaded ’progressive
intellectual’ and have a sheikh informant tailing your every move.
While he waits for his travel application to be processed, Khalil spends his days observing the comings and goings of his eccentric neighbours and fellow townspeople
with a cool eye, and his nights penning new ideas for scenes in his tattered notebook.
Wedad reassures him that even when he goes away, he will remain her only love.
Soon, under mounting pressure from the foreign film production company to get
himself to Europe, with his landlord trying to have him jailed and one of the deadliest
military attacks the Gaza Strip has ever seen imminent, Khalil’s patience is wearing
terribly thin. He storms into the travel agency that filed his request for permission
to leave and demands to know the status of his application. When he learns it has
been denied, he initiates a face-off with the leader of the radical religious movement,
Sheikh Malek, at the local café.
Just as Israeli drones are gathering ominously in the sky, the tensions between
Khalil and the religious authorities rise to a fever pitch. He survives this, and minutes
before the bombs begin to rain down on Gaza, Hassan surprises Khalil with a hardwon travel permit. Khalil can hardly believe his nightmare is over.
Khalil rushes to his office to prepare for his trip, only to find it in ruins from Operation Cast Lead. Wedad soon joins him there, and they stare at each other, motionless. The phone rings. probably the producer from Europe. Khalil doesn’t answer.
He and Wedad fall into a passionate embrace, and she asks him if he is going to go
away after all.
26
Inspired by our own experience of making films in Gaza and the especially absurd difficulties we faced, it was natural to want to tell a story about making movies against the
tide and in a prohibitive context.
Using humor to describe a situation that the whole population is trapped in, and through
an ensemble of burlesque urban vignettes that repeat and slowly evolve in the wake of
life’s surreal monotony of contemporary Gaza in Palestine, The Script is Ready draws a
portrait of a whole society, and explores the very dialectics of time, place, and identity.
Widening that context to any place where someone is struggling to produce art in the
midst of social and institutional restrictions, we ask the larger question of how artists
are supposed to work toward the betterment of their society when there is a fundamental distrust for culture itself.
The script is now in the final stages of development. Our cinematographic vision, derived from a realist style in the spirit of European filmmakers like Jacques Tati, Emir
Kusturica, and Roy Andersson, uses long scenes and slow track movement in order to
heighten the sense of time and reflect the protagonist’s experience of reality. A range of
eccentric yet archetypal characters (to be played by non-professional actors) will add to
the sense of spontaneity and realism as it will also help to transmit a universal vignette
of a time and place.
As filmmakers, we believe cinema to be, through entertainment, an important instrument of social critique and awakening. This film is our attempt to highlight the value
of protecting diversity and individuality – in the Arab world and beyond – from political
attempts at imposing a unilateral lens on life.
Writer/Director’s Biography
Budding filmmakers and identical twin brothers
Tarzan and Arab — real names Ahmed and Mohamed Abu Nasser — hail from Gaza. They were
born in 1988, one year after the last cinemas in
Gaza were closed. They graduated from Al-Aqsa
University with a bachelor degree in Fine Arts
(painting), the brothers developed their passion
for filmmaking soon afterwards. In 2010, Tarzan
and Arab received the A.M. Qattan Foundation’s
prestigious Young Artist of the Year Award for
their conceptual artwork Gaza Wood, a series of mock-Hollywood posters for imaginary
feature films named after real Israeli military offensives on Gaza as well as for their short
film Colorful Journey. The posters and film were featured in a number of exhibitions
abroad and being named two of the ’50 People Shaping the Culture of the Middle East’ by
Al-Monitor in 2012. Last year, they initiated the development of a creative triad through
the establishment of Made in Palestine Project with Palestinian architect and designer
Rashid Abdelhamid; an independent arts initiative to create and promote contemporary
visual art with a focus on Palestine. In February of 2013, they wrote and directed the short
film, Condom Lead which was selected to the official short film competition in the 66th
Cannes film festival competing as the first Palestinian short film in Cannes.
27
Producer’s statement
As a producer, my goal is to make films that convey an alternative vision of Palestine
and the Arab world showing the diversity of the region and its human stories… The
Script is Ready is conceived as such a film. While the story is inspired by Tarzan and
Arab’s experiences making films in Gaza, the film has a symbolic depth that allows its
messages about protecting intellectual diversity and freedom of expression to work on
a universal level. This quality is key, because it is what functions as the bridge in the
development of greater understanding between people and cultures.
The Script is Ready fits well with the profile and overall development strategy of the
production company. Indeed, the company was founded in part to provide a structure
and a banner under which Tarzan, Arab and I could work together as a creative triad
following our initial meeting in the summer of 2012. The Made in Palestine Project
was launched in February 2013 as an independent initiative to create and promote
contemporary film and visual art with a focus on Palestine. We seek to support the
creativity of emerging visual artists and create new opportunities for the next generation
of Arab creators. The company is committed to reaching new audiences and widening
the global perspective on Palestine through a spectrum of cultural platforms including
films, exhibitions, and publications. As an independent feature film project promoting
strong artistic expression by young, emerging regional cultural producers, The Script is
Ready is a strong candidate for the first feature film for the company.
The film is currently in the final stages of development and fundraising, and we have
secured French co-production. Our co-producer, Incognita, is a subsidiary of one of
France’s leading production companies, Europacorp. This production partnership is
built on our shared objective to submit the film to major international film festivals in
2014. Our fundraising capacities have recently seen an immense boost from the buzz
being generated around our first short film, Condom Lead (also written and directed by
Tarzan and Arab), which was selected to compete for the Short Film Palme d’Or at the
2013 Cannes Film Festival. The announcement has stirred interest among international
partners (particularly from Europe and the Arab Gulf) and created greater industry
credibility for the company within the independent film sector.
The Script is Ready has an international natural audience that appreciates the
independent art film with its character-driven stories and global perspective (this was
the audience for Kusturica’s “Black Cat, White Cat,” for example). Arabic will be the
film’s language, but we intend for its distinct cinematographic style, universal story and
message, high production values, and unique, colorful characters to transcend cultural
limitations, increase global audience appeal, and expand the regional and international
potential of the project. Our co-producer has already contacted several major French
and international sales and distribution companies; we expect to close an agreement in
the upcoming months.
Producer’s biography
Rashid Abdelhamid is an architect, designer, art
curator, and film producer. Of mixed PalestinianSerbian origin, he was born and raised in Algeria
and received his education in France and Italy, going on to live and work in Gaza from 1997 to 2008.
In early 2013, in collaboration with twin Gazan
filmmakers Tarzan and Arab, he founded the
Made in Palestine Project, an independent arts
initiative to create and promote contemporary
visual art with a focus on Palestine. He is also cofounder and Artistic Director of Alhoush.com, a pioneering cultural networking and e-commerce portal for contemporary Arab art and design launched in April 2012. Before his work
on Condom Lead, Abdelhamid produced a series of short movies on contemporary Arab
artists for Alhoush.com. He also assisted with the production and distribution of Tarzan and
Arab’s 2010 film, Colourful Journey, which earned their makers the prestigious A.M. Qattan
Foundation’s Young Artist of the Year Award. Colourful Journey has since been screened
in over 20 countries, and recently was included in the official selection of the Rotterdam
International Film Festival.
In 2013, he produced and acted in the short film Condom Lead, which made the Official selection
of the Festival de Cannes (the first time a Palestinian short film has been selected in this category).
Abdelhamid is currently producing Made in Palestine Project’s first feature film, The Script
is Ready, currently in the final stages of development and funding. He is also Project Manager of the Karama Human Rights Film Festival Palestine, a collaboration with Ma3mal 612
(Think Factory), which took place across five cities in Palestine in December 2013.
Financial Plan (USD)
Source
Private funding (MIPP)
Sanad
Cinemed
HB fund
AFAC
Doha Film institute
Private funding (French co-producer)
CNC
Arte Cinema (presale)
Free TV
Pay TV
MG distributor
Amount ($)
11,000
10,000
9,000
10,000
35,000
100,000
35,000
200,000
100,000
40,000
40,000
25,000
TOTAL
619,000 $
Status
Secured
Secured
Secured
Secured
Secured
Submitted
Secured
Submitted
Submitted
TBD
TBD
TBD
Contact Info
Ahmed “Tarazan” and Mohammed “Arab” Abu Nasser
Co-writers/co-directors
Address: Jabal Weibdeh, Amman Jordan
Telephone: +962 77 9789767
Email: arab.ver@gmail.com ; tarazan.nasser@gmail.com
28
%
1.7
1.6
1.4
1.6
5.6
16
5.6
32
16
6.5
6.5
4
Rashid Abdelhamid
Producer
Address: Jabal Weibdeh Amman Jordan
Telephone: +962 77 7006666
Email: madeinpal.project@gmail.com
29
THE TRANSLATOR
Rana Kazkaz / Anas Khalaf - Syria
Synopsis
Syria 1980. Sammy watches afraid as his father and beloved brother Zaid bravely
participate in a peaceful demonstration. Zaid returns home safely, but their father
is arrested and returns home weeks later, bearing signs of horrific torture.
Australia 2000. Twenty years later, Sammy is hired as the official translator for the
Syrian Olympic Team. While translating for one of the athletes, Sammy makes
a mistake that reveals his true, critical feelings about President Assad’s regime.
Afraid he will have to face consequences upon his return to Syria, Sammy defects
and stays in Australia.
Sydney, Australia 2011. Sammy has been working as an Arabic – English translator.
When the Syrian revolution begins, Sammy starts to translate videos of the conflict,
exposing the Assad regime’s brutality. While translating, Sammy comes across
footage of Zaid getting arrested.
Never forgetting their strong bond, Sammy decides to illegally cross back into Syria
in order to find his brother. There he discovers Zaid’s wife Karma and his sister
Loulou and learns further of Zaid’s arrest and how difficult life has been for his
family since he left Syria. Sammy pursues normal channels to find Zaid, but all
attempts are unsuccessful. Soon, the authorities learn that Sammy is back in the
country, putting not only his, but also Loulou and Karma’s lives in danger.
To protect the family, Karma drives Sammy to her parents’ house. There, Sammy
meets Kareem, his nephew, for the first time. Sammy and Kareem connect as a
result of their shared condition of living with fear. And in turn, they help one another
begin to find their courage.
News comes that Zaid’s friends, who were also arrested, are being released.
Sammy and Karma await news of Zaid’s release. But it doesn’t come. Rather than
accept that Zaid might be dead, Sammy seeks information from the military and is
arrested in the process. Once arrested, Sammy witnesses a terrifying underworld
and learns that whether imprisoned or dead, Zaid has been added to the list of
thousands of Syrians who have gone ‘missing’ over the past forty years. Eventually,
the Free Syrian Army liberates Sammy and he decides to stay in Syria to participate
in the revolution.
30
Writer/Director’s Statement
The first five months of the Syrian Revolution were marked by peaceful protestors asking for
‘dignity’, who were then shot at, arrested, tortured and killed by President Assad’s regime.
This is when our film takes place: from March - July 2011. After those five months of peaceful
protests, the conflict has now blown up into the sectarian, regional, proxy, religious war that
we are witnessing today, three years later, in 2014.
We were living in Damascus, Syria with our two small children when the revolution started in
March 2011. At that point, surrounded by conflict, we, Anas and Rana, also found ourselves in
conflict with one another. Afraid, Rana wanted to leave the country, while Anas wanted to stay.
We spent the next year apart and, at times, it felt like the only thing that connected us was the
creation of this film.
Our circle of friends and family includes both those who are pro-Assad and those who are victims
of the regime’s brutality because they choose to take a stand against government oppression.
Our belief is that in any crisis, one must take a side. And with this film, we have. This is a film
about an ordinary person who eventually finds the courage to demand a better life.
Writer/Director’s Biography
Rana and Anas are developing two Syrian feature
films: The Translator and The Hakawati’s Daughter. The latter was selected by the Crossroads
Thessaloniki Co-Production Market (2009) where
it won a grant to attend the Mediterranean Film
Institute (2010) and selected as a finalist in the
Abu Dhabi Shasha (2010) screenwriting competition, where it was awarded 2nd place - a trip to
attend the Melbourne International Film Festival’s Co-Production Market (2011). This film was
also awarded Europe’s MEDIA development grant (2012) and most recently selected for
participation in the Interchange Development Program in Torino, Italy and Dubai (2012).
Their short films include Kemo Sabe, Ham and Deaf Day.
Rana holds an MFA in Acting from Carnegie Mellon/Moscow Art Theater and attended the
Directing Workshop for Women at the American Film Institute.
31
Producer’s statement
Most of our family still lives in Syria. And we have friends and family who have been imprisoned, kidnapped, tortured and displaced as a result of the current conflict. It was a very
difficult decision to leave the country and it is hard to be away. We still have our home there
and sadly it was bombed in an attack. Yet we hope to return one day.
Meant to highlight the fear that typifies what it has been like to live in Syria for the past 43
years under a brutal dictatorship, The Translator pays tribute to the Syrians struggling to
overthrow Syria’s regime and replace it with one that embraces democratic values.
We first pitched this project at the Melbourne International Film Festival’s Co-Production
Market in 2011 and it was there that we gained an immediate commitment from John Molloy
of Mushroom Pictures.
Financial Plan (in USD)
Source
Amount ($)
%
Status
Mushroom Pictures, Australia
Cinema du Monde, France
TV Presales
Private Equity
Doha Film Institute (Production)
Sanad Fund (Development)
Arab Fund for Arts and Culture
Hubert Bals Fund
Jordan Film Fund
400,000.00
140,000.00
140,000.00
292,832.00
50,000.00
20,000.00
30,000.00
14,000.00
50,000.00
33.85%
11.85%
11.85%
24.78%
8.46%
1.69%
2.12%
1.18%
4.23%
Confirmed
Will apply
Will apply
In negotiations
Will apply
Will apply
Will apply
Will apply
Will apply
Total
1,181,832.00$
100%
Producer’s biography
Anas has worked with Frederic Golchan Productions, co-produced the feature Prospect and also
served as First AD for The Adventures of Frank
Dern. With BintFilm, Anas served as Executive Producer of Driving to ZigZigland (Winner Best Film,
Amal Festival) and developed Sleeping on Stones
(Rawi Screenwriter’s Lab and MFCB, Cannes). In
addition to producing, Anas also directs, acts and
writes. His next film project, Expelled, will shoot in
Chicago in the summer of 2014. Anas holds an MBA from the Normandy Graduate School of Business in France.
Co-Producer’s biography
Ossama Bawardi is an independent producer who
has been involved in various productions including Paradise Now, Be Quiet and Salt of this Sea
which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in
2008. He line produced (No) Laughing Matter
(2010), A Stone’s Throw from Prison (2013), and
Good Morning Kabul (2014) as well as numerous
other fiction and documentary films. Most recently
he produced Horizon (2013) as well as When I Saw You (2012) by Annemarie Jacir which won
numerous awards including the NETPAC Critics Award for Best Asian Film at the Berlin Film
Festival. Bawardi directed and produced the short film Haneen (2010).
32
Contact Info
Rana Kazkaz
Writer/Co-Director
Telephone: +1-917-297-4934
Email: rana@syneastes.com
Ossama Bawardi
Co-Producer
Telephone: +962-7-972-70430
Email: ossama_b@hotmail.com
Anas Khalaf
Producer/Co-Director
Telephone: +33-6-89830735
Email: anas@syneastes.com
33
TWO ROOMS AND A PARLOR
Sherif Bendari / Racha Najdi - Egypt/Lebanon
Synopsis
Ten whole years have passed since Khalil Suleiman retired after a routine career.
Unlike his wife Ihsan, Khalil considers that his life has already ended, so he’s
thinking of investing the money that he’ll earn in a few months from his savings
into buying a separate plot in the cemetery that will unite him with his wife, his
son and his grandchildren in a common future project, instead of being each
buried in a different location.
Ihsan wants to change the tiles of her apartment to install ceramic ones and to
replace her old furniture with new pieces. So Khalil pretends to give in to her
insistence, but without giving up trying to convincing her.
Suddenly, Ihsan dies. Khalil is left alone having to confront people after
spending a whole life trying to avoiding them.
Realizing that he has never in his life left Cairo and that in fact he’s never travelled
anywhere, Khalil thinks that he cannot die without having seen any other country
in his life and so he decides to take a plane trip for the first time in his life.
Loneliness, on one hand, and the travel arrangements on the other force
Khalil to get involved in his neighbor’s lives although he didn’t know any of
them except for Abdel Aal, a photographer who retired after being diagnosed
with cancer. So he meets his neighbor Azza, living across from his apartment,
who was a dancer who quit her job after she had grown old. He also meets
another of his neighbors, Yasser, a religiously committed young man, who
cannot have children, but is afraid of undergoing an artificial insemination
procedure because he believes it is forbidden by his religion. Khalil also meets
his neighbor Irene, who is an introvert veterinarian.
Khalil gets ready for his trip and prepares everything, but he then faces some
obstacles. Firstly, he suffers from heart disease and does not feel well enough to
put up with travelling. Secondly, he does not own a passport. Thirdly, he knows
no other language than Arabic. And fourthly, his son strongly disapproves of the
idea of his traveling. But Khalil overcomes those obstacles one after the other,
and each time he gets close to one of his neighbors, he finds out about their
problems and helps solve them.
Khalil receives the money from his savings and he is very close to his dream
travel, after making everyone around him happy... But Yasser’s wife suddenly
gives birth and the little baby is admitted to the nursery which is very costly.
Khalil gives the money he has saved to Yasser, and goes back to his life - which
has been turned upside down.
34
Director’s Statement
“Has Suleiman grown taller?” wondered Suleiman’s father, when visited by his 30 year-old
son Suleiman.
That question summarized my second short film (a graduation project at the High Cinema
Institute). This film was the second installment in a short film trilogy that I always wanted
to make earlier as a debut feature….The Day Trilogy: Three short films about close
relationships that are important to me.
Rise and Shine: The beginning of the day…about my mother.
At Day’s End”: The middle of the day…about my father.
At Night”: The end of the day…about my love.
My obsession wasn’t with making films about those people for its own sake; it was more of a
desire to re-incarnate my relationship with them, and what they represent to me, through film.
In At Day’s End, I dealt with my relationship with my father…. and self-assessed my attitude
towards it, for the film had to be a reinvention of that relationship. Finally I found what I
have always searched for in a short story by Ibrahim Aslan called At Day’s End. It was part
of a series of short stories published weekly in Al Ahram newspaper…It was strange that
this story even coincidentally carried the name of the same part of the day! And even more
strange was the father-son relationship depicted: exactly the same as my experience! This
story is mine and it’s going to be my next film…
Fall 2009:
…Now, my first feature film.
I am searching for my first feature and I can’t find it…or in other words: I don’t know what
I really want to make.
Aslan continues publishing his series of short stories every Wednesday in Al Ahram, daily
life involving Suleiman’s father and mother in their narrow domestic space.
Winter 2009:
I’m still searching for my first feature film…it seems that I have come closer to what I want.
It’s the drama of daily life….but how?
Aslan publishes his short story series in one volume under the name Two chambers and a living room.
“Shouldn’t you have called it Two rooms and a parlor, Mr. Ibrahim?”
He answers, after a moment of his usual silence: “No, it’s good that way, Two chambers
and a living room”.
“As you like, Mr. Ibrahim.”
I read the whole series of short stories in one volume. It wasn’t just a book of short stories
– it was an exquisite piece of literature, the characters alive and carefully studied, drifting
together in their limited space…and as I finished reading, I had two feelings:
First, that there was something missing in my short film At Day’s End, and that there was
still some space in that book that the film didn’t unleash. Second, I felt that there was
someone in the world of literature who was speaking with my own tongue. In literature,
Aslan sees things in the same way as I see them cinematically. It is the normal daily drama
of everyday life which I have always loved; which may lack major events or dramatic plots
but is filled with emotions. It’s all about the normal and simple details that overwhelm us
when we stop and watch closely, whether in cinema or in literature.
35
I find Aslan has turned dust into gold. The simplest characters and events that we all
pass by and see every day are transformed by him into great literature. It resonates with
my taste in cinema, this formula is what attracts me the most yet this is what I haven’t
had the bravery of even thinking about making as there are major production problems
for this form of work in the cinema in Egypt.
I recall one of the most well-known directors in Egypt who was a member of the jury
that watched my graduation project, telling me literally: “Your film is beautiful, but don’t
you ever think that you’ll be able to do that when you graduate and make mainstream
features.”
But now, and like the many other things that have changed dramatically in this country
during the past two years, I think it’s time for this change to take place in the film
industry. I also think it’s time for me to make movies that I would love to watch, even if
the cinema industry finds this difficult.
…To the daily life drama which I love,
…To the tiny details that make up our lives and yet we just neglect,
…To father-son relationships,
Producer’s statement
The story, the script and the director represented a real fascination for me.
The story is tailored in a very special way to make a striking script that represents the
little details of simple life.
From my previous knowledge of Sherif, I know his style and I know that he is the person
that will achieve this film in the best way.
The movie represents the story of a 70 year old man but is also the story of the human
details that take place quietly in big city that we never manage to tackle except in
literature. Therefore, turning it into a movie is fascinating for me, and making this film
- that represents an approach that we rarely see in the Arabic cinema - is my main
motivation.
I make my first feature film: Two Rooms and a Parlour.
Producer’s biography
Director’s Biography
Born in 1978, Egyptian filmmaker Sherif Elbendary lives and works in Cairo. Elbendary graduated from the Faculty of Applied Arts in 2001 and
pursued film directing studies at the High Institute of Cinema in Cairo. He graduated in 2007
with an honorable mention and received his diploma in 2010, where he has been teaching film
directing since 2008.
In 2004 Elbendary started working as Assistant
Director in feature films and in commercials.
During 2008 and 2009, Elbendary directed six documentaries between Mauritania and Egypt
for Al Jazeera TV produced by Hot Spot Films in Dubai as well as many TV commercials.
His first short fiction film, Rise & Shine, produced by the Egyptian Film Center in 2006, was
officially selected in more than 75 film festivals in 33 countries and won 15 awards.
Elbendary’s second short film was his graduation project At Day’s End, produced by the
High Institute of Cinema in 2008 which was officially selected in more than 50 film festivals
and won 14 awards.
Sherif participated with his short Curfew as part of the collective feature 18 days, an official
selection in the 64th Cannes Film Festival in 2011 and in several other festivals.
Sherif has been working on his first feature film script Two Rooms and a Parlour since early
2010.
36
Racha Najdi is a producer in the fields of cinema and music. Most recently, she worked with
Wika (Cairo) on the production and distribution of
Nadine Khan’s first feature film Harag w Marag
(Chaos and Disorder, 2011) which won the Grand
Jury Selection Prize at the Dubai Film Festival in
2012.
In 2011-2012, she was manager of the Express
Fund at the Arab Fund for Arts and Culture
(AFAC), a competitive program providing funding
to artists from the Arab World in support of projects inspired by the Arab Spring.
Najdi studied Public Relations and Advertising at
the Lebanese University in Beirut and in 2009 obtained a Masters in Cultural Management and International Cooperation.
37
Financial Plan (inUSD)
38
Contact Info
Source
Amount ($)
%
Status
Distributor
Investor
Doha Film Institute
Cairo Film Connection
Arab funds for Arts and Culture
Fonds du cinema du monde- CNC
Vision sud-est
250,000
250,000
70,000
10,000
30,000
200,000
40,000
29.4%
29.4%
8.2%
1.2%
3.5%
23.5%
4.7%
Confirmed
Confirmed
Confirmed
Confirmed
Confirmed
Applying in January
Applying in May
Total
850,000 $
Sherif El Bendary
Director
Address: 18- Cairo university professor’s city,
Giza Cairo
Telephone: +201001154750
Email: shbncin@yahoo.com
Racha Najdi
Producer
Address: 21- Taha Hussein St- Zamalek Cairo
Telephone: +201145086666
Email: racha.najdi@gmail.com
39
UNTIL THE END OF TIME
Yasmine Chouikh / Karima Chouikh - Algeria
Director’s Statement
I wanted to talk about a love story born in a cemetery, a love story between two older
people who do not expect anything more from life, who think they only have to right to
die.
It is a metaphor of our societies that tend to be sinister places where death reigns and
love is taboo.
And even if love is tolerated it remains possible only for the young.
Synopsis
For the ‘marabout’ watching over the dead souls at Sidi Boulekbour, life goes on,
while the faithful wait for the ‘Ziara’, that time of the year when families come to
visittheir dead relatives.
For Ali, the seventy-year-old self-effacing gravedigger, Ziara this year was not
supposed to be any different, but this time Joher, in her sixties, arrives to visit
her sister’s grave.
In the collective conscience of my society, elders incarnate wisdom and maturity; they
are models with no sensuality, sexuality or desire.
This approach is so anchored in our daily life that I’ve decided that my characters will
live this idyll secretly. They are convinced that love is not possible at their age.
On a background of death, forbidden love, savage capitalism, conservatism of women’s
condition and the oppressive weight of society, each character of this story will open
him or herself to the freedom of love and the right to dream.
Wanting to have her final resting place beside her sister, Joher decides to
organize her own funeral. She asks her new friend Ali for some help. Skeptical
at first, Ali is afraid his refusal will drive Joher away from him and ultimately
complies.
During their three days of pilgrimage, Ali and Joher learn to discover each other
timidly. But Joher is reluctant to allow herself this new feeling at her age.
The cemetery becomes the theater of a love story; bringing life to this place of
death.
40
Writer/Director’s biography
Born in 1982 in Algiers, Yasmine Chouikh studied
human arts and sciences, and graduated with a
degree in psychology.
She worked as a cultural journalist in a daily
newspaper, l’Autentique, in 2004 and in 2005 she
joined Algerian national television EPTV hosting a
cinema program.
She directed two short films, The Door in 2006,
and The Djinn in 2010,
She was the art director of the International
Taghit Short Film Festival (Algeria) from 2009 to 2012 and was in charge of short films at the
International Arab Film Festival of Oran, Algeria from 2008 to 2011.
41
Producer’s statement
Why Until the End of Time?
From ancient times, death has always been a subject of reflection for men.
This is the unique story of Joher, a woman who arrives in a cemetery and who decides
to organize her own funeral with the help of Ali, the village gravedigger.
This strange request is going to unite them and transform their relationship into love.
But this life story is taking plallce in a cemetery; it is a childish love story between two
old people in a village dedicated to death which becomes full of life.
This convinced me of the necessity that this movie has to be made. The cemetery is
transformed into a place of life where people meet, gather, love, a place which reveals
people’s souls.
Until the End of Time is a cosmic story, full of black humor, oscillating between drama
and comedy, reality and absurdity. It is clearly a film which believes that hope is still a
Financial Plan (in USD)
Source
Amount ($)
%
Status
Algerian Part
FDATIC Algerian ministry of culture
ONDA copy right Office
Provence of the city of Mostaganem
Compagnies of the city of Mostaganem
Producer Part
478 552,955
47 855,2955
47 855,2955
95 710,591
47 855,2955
50%
5%
5%
10%
5%
In Place
In Progress
In Progress
In Progress
In Place
Foreign part
Aide aux Cinemas du Monde - France
AFAC
SANAD Abu Dhabi
Gan Foundation France
Co-producer
191 421,182
9 571,0591
9 571,0591
9 571,0591
19 142,1182
20%
1%
1%
1%
2%
In Progress
In Progress
In Progress
In Progress
In Progress
Total
957 105,91$
100%
Producer’s biography
Born in 1983 in Algiers, Karima Chouikh studied
management and economy, graduated in Commercial Sciences with a Master II in Financial
Management.
She started working as an auditor in KPMG in 2007
then as a financial executive in BPH (Algerian Oil
Company) in 2008.
Karima also worked in a media company as a
production manager in TV shows and TV games, she also took part in the organization of
Timimoun International Film Festival. She also worked as a production assistant on Hamlet
of Women (2004), The Andalusian (2011) by Mohamed Chouikh, and on El Djinn and El Bab,
Contact Info
Yasmine Chouikh
Writer/Director
Address: 17b cité 8 mai 1945 BEZ Algiers, Algeria
Telephone: + 213 560 90 80 61
Fax: + 213 21 51 73 58
Email: chouikh.yasmine@hotmail.fr
Karima Chouikh
Producer
Address: 17b cité 8 mai 1945 BEZ Algiers, Algeria
Telephone: + 213 560 90 80 61
Fax: + 213 21 51 73 58
Email: chouikhk@gmail.com
42
43
Adrienne Fréjacques
ARTE France
MED FILM FACTORY GUESTS
Holder of postgraduate diplomas in audio-visual & international law, Adrienne
Fréjacques started her career in film distribution and international fund
raising within IMA Production (1990 – 1993) and Point du Jour (1993 to 1999).
From 1999 to July 2012, Adrienne Fréjacques joined Arte France Development
department as head of editorial content (cinema- fiction and documentaries)
for Arte DVD and book collections.
Since September 2012, Adrienne Fréjacques is working with Judith Louis
as Commissioning Editor at Arte France’s Drama department.
Additionally, since 2006, Adrienne Fréjacques has been involved in various
CNC working group committees in relation to her fields of expertise, such as Aide au Cinéma du
Monde (2012), Fonds Sud Cinéma (2010-2011) and Fonds d’Aide à l’Innovation Audiovisuelle and Aide
à l’Ecriture section documentaire (2009) among others. For the coming years (2014 – 2016), she will
be a member of Fonds Innovation Fiction.
Christoph Thoke
Mogador Film
Christoph Thoke is a German Film Producer and President of Mogador
Film. A leading independent producer with partners in 24 countries,
his films reached 620 festival selections and won 150 awards.
Before Christoph became independent, he worked as a studio
executive at German major Bavaria Film and at Taunus Film,
Wiesbaden. He was Head of International Co-production and Licensing
at Germany’s post-production giant Cine Media Film, where he was
involved in global blockbuster successes like What Woman Want
starring Mel Gibson.
Christoph then began to produce through his own shingle Thoke + Moebius Film. In 2007, he
launched Mogador Film (Berlin, Frankfurt, Mainz) from where he is currently producing and
financing for the local and international market.
He has been working with highly acclaimed directors such as three-time Cannes winner
Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne and two-times Cannes winner Bruno Dumont, Apichatpong
Weerasethakul and Rachid Bouchareb.
So far, he has been working with highly acclaimed directors such as three-time Cannes
winners Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne and two-times Cannes winner Bruno Dumont,
Apichatpong Weerasethakul and Rachid Bouchareb. Two of his films won prizes in Cannes:
Lorna’s Silence for Best Script and Tropical Malady for Jury Award. Tropical Malady was also
named Best Film of the Year 2004 by Film Magazine ‘Cahiers du Cinéma’.
45
Delphine Tomson
Eric Lagesse
After graduating in photography, Delphine Tomson started working for
Derives in 2001. Derives is the production company created by Jean-Pierre
and Luc Dardenne in the eighties that is fully dedicated to documentary
films.
After a few months, she moved to Les Films du Fleuve as Production
assistant and held this position during 5 years. From 2007 to 2008, she
worked as administrator/accountant and production manager. In October
2008, she was promoted executive producer of Les Films du Fleuve.
Born in 1962, Eric started his career at Pyramide in September 1992 in
the world sales section. In 1994, he became Managing Director of Flach
Pyramide International (FPI) and then Managing Director of Pyramide’s
group in November 2004, running both the French distribution branch and
the world sales branch, renamed Pyramide International. Since May 2008,
he is President of Pyramide’s group and main shareholder of the company.
As a French distributor, Pyramide releases approximately 12 to 14 films
per year and 20 as a sales agent. It is one of France’s leading independent
companies.
From the very beginning, Pyramide Distribution dedicated itself to “auteurs” and released in France
all films by Aki Kaurismäki and films by Fatih Akin (On the Edge of Heaven), Nuri Bilge Ceylan (Three
Monkeys), Apichatpong Weerasetakhul (Uncle Boonmee – Palme d’Or Cannes 2010), Clio Barnard
(The Sellfish Giant), Andrei Zviaguintsev (Elena, Leviathan) and Mohamed Diab (Cairo 678) among many
others.
As a world sales company and a French distributor, Pyramide has released films by renowned
directors including Youssef Chahine (Destiny), Alain Resnais (Smoking, No Smoking), Tony Gatlif (Exils),
Denys Arcand (The Barbarian Invasions), William Friedkin (Killer Joe) and Mahamat-Saleh Haroun (A
Screaming Man).
Always looking for new talents, Pyramide has also released, domestically and internationally, films by
young directors such as Diego Lerman (Tan de Repente), Wang Xiao-Shuai (Beijing Bicycle), Philippe
Faucon (La Trahison), Lucia Puenzo (XXY), Michael Rowe (Leap Year – Camera d’Or Cannes 2010) and
more recently Marie Amachoukeli, Claire Burger & Samuel Theis (Party Girl – Camera d’Or Cannes
2014).
Diverse genres, directors and producers remain Pyramide’s main asset, allowing the company to
display to audiences and buyers of the world a large selection of high quality French and foreign films.
Pyramide now runs a catalogue of approximately 300 titles.
Les Films du Fleuve
Dominique Besnehard
Mon Voisin Productions
Dominique Besnehard is a French producer and actor, formerly an agent
for many actors at Artmedia talent agency. He was born on February 5th,
1954 in Bois-Colombes (Hauts-de-Seine) and grew between up Houlgate
and Vire in Normandy.
Noticed very early by Jacques Doillon for his interpersonal skills, then by
Maurice Pialat who entrusted him with his casting, Dominique became
one of the biggest talent scouts of the French cinema, embracing the
profession of casting director.
In 1986, he joined the talent agency Artmedia and shifted careers as he
took on the recruitment of young actors and writers, and thus becoming an agent.
He has been an agent for many international actors and actresses, including Isabelle Adjani, Sophie
Marceau, Béatrice Dalle, Michel Blanc, Alain Chabat, Christophe Lambert among others as well as
numerous film directors such as François Ozon and Xavier Beauvois.
In 2006, he created his own production company, Mon Voisin Productions. In May 2007, the first film
produced by Dominique Besnehard, L’Âge des Ténèbres, by Denys Arcand, is selected to the closing
ceremony of the 60th Cannes Film Festival. Since then, Mon Voisin Productions has produced 15 films
including Perfect Mothers by Anne Fontaine and I was furious at his absence by Sandrine Bonnaire.
46
Pyramide Productions
47
Jessica Khoury
Pim Hermeling
Metropolis Cinema
Wild Bunch Benelux Distribution
Born in 1982 in Beirut, Lebanon, Jessica Khoury has studied International
Affairs and Diplomacy at the Sorbonne in Paris. She has a wide experience
in film production and distribution particularly in Independent Arab
Films. She has worked for the production company Amana Creative
as Project Manager and then joined Pacha Pictures, a sales company
specialized in Arab Films in Paris. She has relocated to Lebanon in 2012
and is now working in film Distribution at MC Distribution in Beirut.
In 1994 Pim Hermeling started as marketing manager at RCV (Recorded
Cinematographic Variety). He then became head of the film department at
20th Century Fox where he was in charge of the marketing campaign for
titles such as Fight Club and Star Wars.
In November 1999, he co-founded A-Film Distribution and by 2004 the
company was the biggest independent distributor in the Benelux for
theatrical and video/DVD. A-Film distributed both major and independent
films like The Lord of the Rings, Magnolia, The Passion of the Christ,
Alexander, Bowling for Columbine, The Constant Gardner, Brokeback
Mountain, Dear Wendy and The Motorcycle Diaries.
In February 2008, he sold his shares in A-Film and in September he started Wild Bunch Benelux
Distribution. This film distribution company is based in Amsterdam and is strongly director driven.
Amongst other titles, Wild Bunch Benelux released the following films: The Visitor, The Wrestler, Two
Lovers, Che: The Argentine & Guerilla, El Secreto de sus Ojos, Departures, Beginners, We need to talk
about Kevin, Melancholia, Jagten and Wadjda.
Pim Hermeling recently opened an art house cinema in Antwerp, Belgium and is developing an art
house complex in Utrecht, Netherlands which will become one of the biggest art house cinemas of
Benelux.
Wild Bunch co-produced its first feature film in the Netherlands, Only Decent People, and will expend
their production outlet in the next month, focusing on international co-productions.
Palmyre Badinier
Les Film de Zayna
Palmyre studied Arabic Literature and International Relations at
Sorbonne University and has worked in the fields of journalism,
diplomacy and international artistic exchanges. Her career in the film
industry began in 2007, while working on the development of films from
the Middle East.
In 2008, Palmyre graduated with a Masters in Law and Management
for the Audiovisual Industry. The same year, she founded Les Films de
Zayna with Palestinian filmmaker Raed Andoni.
The Paris-based company develops and produces films with a strong
focus on stories and talents from the Arab World. Palmyre’s first feature
film as a Producer was the award-winning documentary Fix Me (2009) that premiered at Sundance
and Cannes. Recent titles, mainly documentaries, include films by Sameh Zoabi, Nassim Amaouche,
Mais Darwazeh and Erige Sehiri. Among others, Palmyre is currently developing Raed Andoni’s
second film Ghost Hunting.
Palmyre succeeded to establish for Les Films de Zayna a solid network of professionals and
partners in Europe and Arab countries, with strong ties to broadcasters such as Arte France, as
well as to international funders.
In parallel, Palmyre works as an associate producer for the Palestinian production company Dar
Films, and provides legal consultancies for foreign companies and authors who wish to work with
French partners.
Palmyre is a member of EAVE.
48
49
Pedagogical Team
Dora Bouchoucha
MED FILM FACTORY TEAM
Dora Bouchoucha graduated in English Literature and has
been a film producer since 1994. She has produced and
co-produced several Tunisian and foreign documentaries,
short and feature films including Africa Dreaming, (a series
of short African films) Sabria by Abderrahmen Sissako, The
Season of Men by Moufida Tlatli (Cannes 1998), Baraket by
Jamila Sahraoui (Berlin 2006), Satin Rouge (Berlinale 2002)
and Buried Secrets (Venice Mostra 2009) by Raja Amari. Her
latest productions are the documentaries Cursed be the
phosphate by Sami Tlili, awarded Best Arab Documentary
at Abu Dhabi film Festival 2012, It was better tomorrow by Hinde Boujemaa, official
selection, Venice Mostra 2012 and Best Director Award at Dubai Film Festival 2012
and A Doomed Generation by Nasreddine Ben Maati. She recently co-produced with
ARTE and TEL France Une Jeunesse Tunisienne by Raja Amari which is still in postproduction. Dora Bouchoucha founded the Carthage Film Festival Projects’ workshop
in 1992. She also founded the SUD ECRITURE workshops in 1997, which she has
been running since. Dora Bouchoucha is actively involved in training and promotion
for southern cinema. She was a permanent member of the International Rotterdam
Festival CineMart Board for more than ten years and was consultant for Arab and
African films for the selection board of Venice Film Festival from 2007 to 2011. In 2010,
she was appointed head of Fonds Sud for two years and in 2012, she was appointed
President of the CNC ‘Aide aux cinémas du Monde’ for another two years. She was
head of Carthage Film Festival in 2008 and 2010 and will head it again in 2014.
Lina Chaabane
Lina Chaabane Menzli is a producer at Nomadis Images – Tunisia.
She studied Modern Languages with International Studies in
London. She has been working actively in the field of cinema in
Tunisia since 1992, as production assistant, location manager,
production manager and line producer on numerous short and
feature films. Her credits as line producer include the feature
films Satin Rouge and Buried Secrets by Raja Amari and the
documentaries Cursed be the phosphate by Sami Tlili and It was
better tomorrow by Hinde Boujemaa. She was artistic Director
on the documentaries Dorra Bouzid, A Tunisian woman by
Walid Tayaa and A Doomed Generation by Nasreddine Ben Maati. She has translated many
scripts and subtitles for Tunisian and foreign films in English and French. She trained young
Algerian film-makers on writing short films and is one of the organizers of the SUD ECRITURE
screenwriting workshops since 1997. She was part of the pedagogical committee of the
training programme for creative producers Beyond Borders which took place in Djerba in
June 2010. She has been part of the organizing committee of the Carthage Film Festival since
1992 and was on the board of directors of the festival in 2008 and 2010 and again in 2014.
51
52
Rod Stoneman
Mohannad Al Bakri
Rod Stoneman is the Director of the Huston School of Film &
Digital Media at the National University of Ireland, Galway. He
was Chief Executive of Bord Scannán na hÉireann / the Irish
Film Board until September 2003 and previously a Deputy
Commissioning Editor in the Independent Film and Video
Department at Channel 4 Television. He has made a number
of documentaries including Ireland: The Silent Voices, Italy:
the Image Business, 12,000 Years of Blindness and The
Spindle and has written extensively on film and television.
He is the author of Chávez: The Revolution Will Not Be Televised (2008) and Seeing is
Believing: The Politics of the Visual (2013). Educating Filmmakers: Past, Present and
Future will be published in June this year. He was a member of the pedagogical team for
MEDA Film Development in Marrakech, Morocco and Beyond Borders in Djerba, Tunisia
and Med Film Factory in Amman from 2011. He directed the newsreel workshops at
the Imagine Film Institute during FESPACO in 2009, 2011 and in 2013 in Ouagadougou,
Burkina Faso.
Since April 2012, Luminus Media - Jordan is led by Regional
Managing Director Mohannad Al Bakri, bringing to the
organization through his expertise new creative features
and hosting regional filmmakers into the SAE’s top of the
line facilitates. Luminus Media’s successful partnerships
and funding opportunities since 2012 were made possible
through Al Bakri’s efforts, among them a recent grant from
the European Union entitled “Investing in Culture & Art in the
South Mediterranean – ICAM”, offering regional filmmakers
and artists development grants and creative support.
As previous Head of the Capacity Building Department at the Royal Film CommissionJordan (RFC), Al Bakri oversaw the implementation of its various film programs including
the Rawi Screenwriters’ Lab, the Film House, Educational Feature Film Program,
the Filmmakers Support Program, the Film Clubs and the Film Training Workshops
Program. He is co-founder and Pedagogical Team Member of Med Film Factory, an
advanced RFC training program for Arab Producers and Directors, and supervised the
national, regional and international partnerships with film professionals.
In addition, Al Bakri is a jury member at Screen Institute Beirut, a documentary film
fund for Arab filmmakers; a consultant at the Euromed Audiovisual III programs and an
executive producer on five award winning Jordanian narrative films: Transit Cities, The
Last Friday, A 7 Hour Difference, When Monaliza Smiled and Line of Sight, which were
produced through the Educational Feature Film Program at the RFC.
More recently, Al Bakri is co-founding the Creative Documentary Platform, a regional
initiative aiming to support regional documentaries and their makers in addition to
enhancing further distribution of creative documentaries.
53
Med Film Factory Executive & Management Team
The Royal Film Commission - Jordan
Haneen Sunna’
Project Administrator
Haneen AlSunna graduated from the University of Jordan
with a B.A in Political Science. After graduating, she joined
the team of EuroMed Youth Program in Jordan as a volunteer.
Jumpstarting her work in the field of youth development in and
outside Jordan, Haneen participated in many international
trainings and seminars regarding youth work in the EuroMediterranean countries. In 2012, she changed the course of
her career and decided to fulfill her passion for film by joining
the Royal Film Commission.
George David
General Manager
The Royal Film Commission - Jordan
George David, currently its General Manager, has been working
for the Royal Film Commission – Jordan (RFC) since 2005. He
has also been part of the production team on numerous film
and television projects, as well as working in entertainment PR.
David is currently serving as President on the Board of Directors
of the Association of Film Commissioners International (AFCI).
Following a brief theater career, his work on film in Jordan
started in 1996. He then located to Los Angeles where he
pursued a film degree and then continued on to work as a production manager and
producer in Hollywood.
David has played a key role in attracting and supporting major film productions. These
include the Academy Award sweeper The Hurt Locker, the blockbuster Transformers:
Revenge of the Fallen and many more.
He has also pioneered several educational initiatives in film and television, namely the
Film Train and the Educational Feature Film Program (EFFP) where he undertook the
role of Executive Producer on five feature films to date. In 2011 David was instrumental
in setting up and administering the newly established RFC Jordan Film Fund.
Lina Darwazeh
Project Coordinator
Deema Azar
Project Manager
Deema Azar holds a B.A. in Modern Languages from the
University of Jordan as well as a number of diplomas from the
Paris Chamber of Commerce & Industry. She occupied several
positions at the French Embassy in Jordan; the last position held
being Administrative Head of the Languages’ Department and
Head of Exams at the French Cultural Center of Amman.
Her passion for the movie industry led her to become part of
the Royal Film Commission – Jordan (RFC), which she joined
in April 2011. She currently manages the two regional training
programs at the RFC: Rawi Screenwriters Lab; a screenplay development lab targeting Arab
screenwriters organized in consultation with the Sundance Institute, and Med Film Factory;
a specialized training program for Arab Producers & Directors organized in partnership with
Sud Ecriture – Tunisia and the Huston School of Film & Digital Media – Ireland and co-financed
by the Euromed Audiovisual Program of the European Union.
54
Lina Darwazeh received her bachelor’s degree in English
Language and Literature from Amman Private University.
During her studies, Darwazeh also participated in cultural
events taking place in Jordan, such as conferences and
exhibitions. After graduation, she worked in the educational
field and in the fashion industry. Eventually, her interest in
arts was driving her more and more into media and film.
Becoming part of the Royal Film Commission’s team is a first
step towards fulfilling her passion.
55
Raji Kandalaft
Special Thanks
Chief Financial Officer
Raji Kandalaft is the Chief Financial Officer of the Royal Film
Commission – Jordan. He started his career as an accountant
in 1992 with a trading company that deals with heavy equipment
and construction machinery and in 2001 he joined a garment
manufacturing company as head of the Accounting Department.
In February 2005, Raji joined the Royal Film Commission –
Jordan as Chief Accountant and now he is the head of the Finance
Department. As Chief Financial Officer he worked on most
programs that the Film Commission is implementing including
Rawi Screenwriters’ Lab, Feature Film Training Program, Film Training Workshops Program,
Jordan Film Fund and the accountant of Med Film Factory Program, also worked as the
accountant of the TV Show Mish Saheb Aflam that the Commission produced and supported
the Jordanian Feature Film Captain Abu Raed.
It is with a heavy heart that I write these words, realizing that this beautiful adventure called
Med Film Factory (MFF) is now slowly drawing to a close.
These past three and a half years working on the program have been exciting, intense and
challenging. They were also remarkable, rewarding and enriching on so many different levels.
I would like to extend my deepest gratitude to all those who have contributed to the success of
the program over the past years; Med Film Factory wouldn’t have even been possible if not for
the incredible team work behind it.
Thank you to the Royal Film Commission’s Management and Staff for their support, efforts
and amazing work not only during this cycle but throughout the life span of the Med Film
Factory program.
A special word of thanks goes out to Med Film Factory’s Pedagogical Team for accompanying
the program from the very beginning, your constant dedication and your endless passion have
been key to MFF’s success.
Also, thank you to all our tutors, experts and guests who supported our participants.
Furthermore, I extend my appreciation to our associates and friends for their continuous help
and support over this past year, especially the Regional Monitoring & Support Unit – RMSU –
of the Euromed Audiovisual III program and the Delegation of the European Union to Egypt.
Yousef Lafi
IT Administrator
Yousef Lafi is the IT System Administrator of the Royal Film
Commission – Jordan since February 2012. Holder of a Bachelor’s
degree in Computer Science, Lafi started his career in 2001 as
an IT Technician and System Officer at a credit card company. In
2008, he joined a pioneer nonprofit organization and also worked
with several international organizations and NGOs in Jordan and
abroad as IT System Administrator.
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It has been a pleasure to work on Med Film Factory with each and every one of you, knowing
that you have all played a part in making it come together. Again, thank you all.
Deema Azar
Project Manager
Rawi Screenwriters’ Lab
Med Film Factory
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