I met recently with Jehane Noujaim, Director / Cinematographer (also Director of Control Room, Startup.com, Rafea: Solar Mama ) and Karim Amer Producer / Sound Recordist.
They are here in La in advance of the Oscars which they will attend.
Jehane and Karim have lived both in the Us and Egypt and have family in Egypt. Jehane was arrested more than once during production and was jailed. She said it was a terrifying experience.
They began filming when the occupation and mass demonstrations against the government began in Tahrir Square.
The Egyptian Revolution has been an ongoing rollercoaster over the past two and a half years. Through the news, we only get a glimpse of the bloodiest battle, an election, or a million man march. At the beginning of July 2013, we witnessed the second president deposed within the space of three years.
The Square is an immersive experience, transporting the viewer deeply into the intense emotional drama and personal stories behind the news. It is the inspirational story of young people claiming their rights, struggling through multiple forces, in the fight to create a society of conscience.
To quote the young participants - "We go to the square to discover that we love life outside it, and to discover that our love for life is resistance."
The camera became a revolutionary weapon.
The young revolutionaries in the film are armed with nothing more than cameras, social media, videos posted to YouTube, and a resolute determination to liberate their nation forever from dictators.
The film is made in a cinéma vérité style, giving us an up-close view of revolution from the ground. I've never seen such an historical piece shot in such an intimate way.
New technologies show us that the voice of young people cannot be silenced in this digital age. Our characters are fighting an ancient war with new weapons.
Featured in the film, Khalid and Aida co-founded Mosireen, a collective of individuals turning their cameras towards those in authority to hold them accountable for their actions in the square and beyond.
While the film's characters put their lives on the line to battle the largest standing army in the Middle East with nothing but stones, we as filmmakers were right behind them with our cameras. By living with our characters for nearly three years, the crew, especially Jehane and Karim, were also able to capture the personal sacrifices behind the headlines.
I had a long roaming discussion with Jehane and Karim about their film (which I liked and was very moved by) about Egyptian and world politics and the meaning of the movement depicted in the Square and how it fits and what it means to the world political movements happening now.
They spoke freely so the below quotes can be attributed to either of them or both. I know we all agreed to these sentiments.
"Today in Ukraine and Venezuela people feel they are not authors of their own future. Via the internet they, the Egyptian people and particularly the youth begin to see beyond their national boundaries and become self actualized. The sea of people becomes the power. Very contagious feeling. In the past Egypt had no culture of resistance. When the revolution in the streets began in Egypt went to the streets to create something different from the status quo. If previously society was shaped like a pyramid with all power at the top the new vision was of society as flat - the Square was flat and the masses were there. Egypt has so many problems. There is extreme pollution, bad water, an escalating gap between the rich and poor, steadily increasing cost of living and especially during the last 10 years all kinds of abuses from the Mubarek family. We think in this period the internet opened eyes in Egypt and especially to the mass of youth who then went to the Square by the hundreds of thousands and also throughout Egypt."
They have Us distribution from Netflix. I recommend you see this remarkable film which will help your understanding not just of Egypt but of today's world.
They are here in La in advance of the Oscars which they will attend.
Jehane and Karim have lived both in the Us and Egypt and have family in Egypt. Jehane was arrested more than once during production and was jailed. She said it was a terrifying experience.
They began filming when the occupation and mass demonstrations against the government began in Tahrir Square.
The Egyptian Revolution has been an ongoing rollercoaster over the past two and a half years. Through the news, we only get a glimpse of the bloodiest battle, an election, or a million man march. At the beginning of July 2013, we witnessed the second president deposed within the space of three years.
The Square is an immersive experience, transporting the viewer deeply into the intense emotional drama and personal stories behind the news. It is the inspirational story of young people claiming their rights, struggling through multiple forces, in the fight to create a society of conscience.
To quote the young participants - "We go to the square to discover that we love life outside it, and to discover that our love for life is resistance."
The camera became a revolutionary weapon.
The young revolutionaries in the film are armed with nothing more than cameras, social media, videos posted to YouTube, and a resolute determination to liberate their nation forever from dictators.
The film is made in a cinéma vérité style, giving us an up-close view of revolution from the ground. I've never seen such an historical piece shot in such an intimate way.
New technologies show us that the voice of young people cannot be silenced in this digital age. Our characters are fighting an ancient war with new weapons.
Featured in the film, Khalid and Aida co-founded Mosireen, a collective of individuals turning their cameras towards those in authority to hold them accountable for their actions in the square and beyond.
While the film's characters put their lives on the line to battle the largest standing army in the Middle East with nothing but stones, we as filmmakers were right behind them with our cameras. By living with our characters for nearly three years, the crew, especially Jehane and Karim, were also able to capture the personal sacrifices behind the headlines.
I had a long roaming discussion with Jehane and Karim about their film (which I liked and was very moved by) about Egyptian and world politics and the meaning of the movement depicted in the Square and how it fits and what it means to the world political movements happening now.
They spoke freely so the below quotes can be attributed to either of them or both. I know we all agreed to these sentiments.
"Today in Ukraine and Venezuela people feel they are not authors of their own future. Via the internet they, the Egyptian people and particularly the youth begin to see beyond their national boundaries and become self actualized. The sea of people becomes the power. Very contagious feeling. In the past Egypt had no culture of resistance. When the revolution in the streets began in Egypt went to the streets to create something different from the status quo. If previously society was shaped like a pyramid with all power at the top the new vision was of society as flat - the Square was flat and the masses were there. Egypt has so many problems. There is extreme pollution, bad water, an escalating gap between the rich and poor, steadily increasing cost of living and especially during the last 10 years all kinds of abuses from the Mubarek family. We think in this period the internet opened eyes in Egypt and especially to the mass of youth who then went to the Square by the hundreds of thousands and also throughout Egypt."
They have Us distribution from Netflix. I recommend you see this remarkable film which will help your understanding not just of Egypt but of today's world.
- 3/2/2014
- by Peter Belsito
- Sydney's Buzz
This is history firsthand, in progress, and unfinished. An invaluable record of revolutionary spirit, and of the lengths to which a threatened leadership will go to preserve itself. I’m “biast” (pro): nothing
I’m “biast” (con): nothing
(what is this about? see my critic’s minifesto)
We watched it on the news, but we never got the full story. (We never do.) On and off between late 2010 and 2013, thousands of protesters against “injustice, corruption, poverty, ignorance” filled Tahrir Square in Cairo, first demanding that despotic leader Hosni Mubarak step down, then to push for the change that the army leadership that took over promised and hadn’t delivered, then for free and fair elections, then against the even more dictatorial Mohammed Morsi, who won an election and granted himself pharaohic powers beyond what even Mubarak had. The fight for a democratic Egypt is far from over, which...
I’m “biast” (con): nothing
(what is this about? see my critic’s minifesto)
We watched it on the news, but we never got the full story. (We never do.) On and off between late 2010 and 2013, thousands of protesters against “injustice, corruption, poverty, ignorance” filled Tahrir Square in Cairo, first demanding that despotic leader Hosni Mubarak step down, then to push for the change that the army leadership that took over promised and hadn’t delivered, then for free and fair elections, then against the even more dictatorial Mohammed Morsi, who won an election and granted himself pharaohic powers beyond what even Mubarak had. The fight for a democratic Egypt is far from over, which...
- 1/10/2014
- by MaryAnn Johanson
- www.flickfilosopher.com
Netflix original documentary “The Square,” a riveting, deeply human chronicle of the Egyptian protest movement from director-producer Jehane Noujaim (“Control Room”; “Startup.com”; “Rafea: Solar Mama”) and producer Karim Amer (“Rafea: Solar Mama”), will premiere exclusively on Netflix in all territories where Netflix is available in early 2014. Winner of this year’s Toronto International Film Festival Documentary People’s Choice Award, “The Square” is an epic documentary that tells the behind-the-headlines story of the Egyptian Revolution through the eyes of young activists who have sought for the last two years to build a better Egypt. from Netflix The film captures the immediacy and intensity of the protests in Tahrir Square from the 2011 overthrow of military leader Hosni Mubarak through...
- 11/4/2013
- by April Neale
- Monsters and Critics
Beverly Hills, Calif., Nov. 4, 2013 — Netflix original documentary “The Square,” a riveting, deeply human chronicle of the Egyptian protest movement from director-producer Jehane Noujaim (“Control Room”; “Startup.com”; “Rafea: Solar Mama”) and producer Karim Amer (“Rafea: Solar Mama”), will premiere exclusively on the world’s leading Internet TV network in all territories where Netflix is available in early 2014. Winner of this year’s Toronto International Film Festival Documentary People’s Choice Award, “The Square” is an epic documentary that tells the behind-the-headlines story of the Egyptian Revolution through the eyes of young activists who have sought for the last two years to build a better Egypt. The film captures the immediacy and intensity of the protests in Tahrir Square from the 2011 overthrow of military leader Hosni Mubarak through the ousting of Mohammed Morsi in 2013, providing a kaleidoscopic, visceral portrait of the events as they unfold before Magdy, a member of the Muslim Brotherhood,...
- 11/4/2013
- by THE DEADLINE TEAM
- Deadline TV
The 13th edition of the Open Frame festival organised by the Public Service Broadcasting Trust (Psbt) will be held from September 11 – 21, 2013. The event focuses on the documentaries made by women, on women. The festival aims to inspire, encourage and bring about awareness on women’s issues through discussions and conversations between the audiences and the filmmakers. The festival will be held at the India International Centre, New Delhi.
For more details see here.
The festival is divided in two parts: a) Film screening and discussions, b) Workshops
Workshops:
Film Appreciation Workshops: Film Appreciation by Prof. Suresh and Documentary Film Appreciation by Prof. Ajit Duara
Intensive Filmmaking Workshops: Aesthetics For Non-Fiction Filmmaking by Prof. Ajit Duara, Essentials Of Documentary Filmmaking by Rajiv Mehrotra and Aspects Of Documentary – Facts And Fictions by Sameera Jain
List of films:
13 September, Friday
10:00 Am – Beyond Women’s Stereotypes
Director: Bindu Nair / India / 2004
10:45 Am – The Grey Area...
For more details see here.
The festival is divided in two parts: a) Film screening and discussions, b) Workshops
Workshops:
Film Appreciation Workshops: Film Appreciation by Prof. Suresh and Documentary Film Appreciation by Prof. Ajit Duara
Intensive Filmmaking Workshops: Aesthetics For Non-Fiction Filmmaking by Prof. Ajit Duara, Essentials Of Documentary Filmmaking by Rajiv Mehrotra and Aspects Of Documentary – Facts And Fictions by Sameera Jain
List of films:
13 September, Friday
10:00 Am – Beyond Women’s Stereotypes
Director: Bindu Nair / India / 2004
10:45 Am – The Grey Area...
- 9/7/2013
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
A still from Rafea: Solar Mama
To Let The World In by Avijit Mukul Kishore, Salma by Kim Longinotto (India-uk) and Rafea: Solar Mama by Mona Eldaief, Jehane Noujaim ( Jordan, United States, Denmark, India) will be screened at the Sheffield Doc/Fest.
In To Let The World In, Volume 1; Avijit Mukul Kishore (Vertical City) retraces a difficult but liberating few decades for Indian art from the 1960s to the 1980s through a collage of interviews, archival photographs, and artworks. The documentary will have a World Premiere at Sheffield.
Salma revolves around a Muslim girl in a South-Indian village who is locked up by her family for 25 years; not allowed to study and forced into a marriage. She covertly takes up composing poems on scraps of paper. Eventually she escapes and lands up in the hands of a publisher. Salma becomes a celebrated Tamil poet, discovering her own freedom and challenging...
To Let The World In by Avijit Mukul Kishore, Salma by Kim Longinotto (India-uk) and Rafea: Solar Mama by Mona Eldaief, Jehane Noujaim ( Jordan, United States, Denmark, India) will be screened at the Sheffield Doc/Fest.
In To Let The World In, Volume 1; Avijit Mukul Kishore (Vertical City) retraces a difficult but liberating few decades for Indian art from the 1960s to the 1980s through a collage of interviews, archival photographs, and artworks. The documentary will have a World Premiere at Sheffield.
Salma revolves around a Muslim girl in a South-Indian village who is locked up by her family for 25 years; not allowed to study and forced into a marriage. She covertly takes up composing poems on scraps of paper. Eventually she escapes and lands up in the hands of a publisher. Salma becomes a celebrated Tamil poet, discovering her own freedom and challenging...
- 5/10/2013
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
New York's Doc NYC festival, which ran November 8-15, announces its jury and audience award winners. Included are Jamie Meltzer's "Informant," a portrait of radical activist-turned-fbi informant Brandon Darby, and Jehane Noujaim and Mona Eldaief's "Rafea: Solar Mama," with follows an illiterate Jordanian woman who becomes a solar panel engineer. Full list below. Viewfinders Competition: The jury selected from among ten films in this section, chosen by the programmers for their distinct directorial visions. Grand Jury Prize Winner - Informant, directed by Jamie Meltzer, probes the radical activist turned FBI informant Brandon Darby Special Jury Prize Winner - Rafea: Solar Mama, directed by Jehane Noujaim and Mona Eldaief, follows an illiterate Jordanian woman who becomes a solar panel engineer Metropolis Competition: The jury selected from among seven films in this section, which showcases films that exemplify the diverse range of stories...
- 11/16/2012
- by Beth Hanna
- Thompson on Hollywood
Following a week of over 100 films and events, the third edition of the ever-growing Doc NYC Festival came to a close Thursday night with a Closing Night screening of Ken Burns, Sarah Burns, and David McMahon's "The Central Park Five." But before the screening, Artistic Director Thom Powers led an awards presentation to hand out the prizes in the Festival's three Jury Prizes-the Viewfinder Competition, Metropolis Competition, and the Shorts Competition-as well as the SundanceNOW Audience Award. Of the ten films vying for the Viewfinders Compeition, chosen by the programmers for their "distinct directorial vision," the Grand Jury Prize went to Jamie Meltzer's "Informant," which investigates the radical activist turned FBI informant Brandon Darby. The Special Jury Prize went to Jehane Noujaim and Mona Eldaief's "Rafea: Solar Mama," which follows an illiterate woman from Jordon who becomes a solar panel engineer. Among...
- 11/16/2012
- by Eric Mattina
- Indiewire
Four Indian films have been selected for the 25th edition of the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (Idfa) that will run from 14th- 25th November, 2012. Another Indian film project Powerless by Deepti Kakkar and Fahad Mustafa has been chosen for the Idfa Forum 2012.
Rafea: Solar Mama, Gulabi Gang, When Hari Got Married and Wilbur Episode 1 will be screened across different sections of the festival.
Idfa is known to be the world’s largest documentary film festival held annually since 1988. This year the festival will screen a total of 314 titles, out of which 97 will be world premieres.
Rafea: Solar Mama
Dir.: Jehane Noujaim and Mona Eldaief (United States/Denmark/Jordan/India)
The film about the Bedouin women, who are trained to build solar panels, has been selected for the Idfa Competition for Feature-Length Documentary section. The making of this was commissioned by ‘Why Poverty?’
Gulabi Gang
Dir.: Nishtha Jain (India/Norway/Denmark,...
Rafea: Solar Mama, Gulabi Gang, When Hari Got Married and Wilbur Episode 1 will be screened across different sections of the festival.
Idfa is known to be the world’s largest documentary film festival held annually since 1988. This year the festival will screen a total of 314 titles, out of which 97 will be world premieres.
Rafea: Solar Mama
Dir.: Jehane Noujaim and Mona Eldaief (United States/Denmark/Jordan/India)
The film about the Bedouin women, who are trained to build solar panels, has been selected for the Idfa Competition for Feature-Length Documentary section. The making of this was commissioned by ‘Why Poverty?’
Gulabi Gang
Dir.: Nishtha Jain (India/Norway/Denmark,...
- 10/17/2012
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
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