Recent reports have been indicating that a more comprehensive censorship process in the UAE has been implemented that has impacted on the production of some Bollywood films.Now The National is highlighting the need for a clear portrayal of the Arab world through films produced in the UAE:
“The Arab world needs to break into the global film industry to challenge ongoing misconceptions, a leading figure in the cinema industry has said.”
“‘Arabs have always been misrepresented in the media and the only thing that is important is image,’ said Masoud al Ali, the artistic director of the fifth Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF), to be held Dec 11 to 18. ‘Image reveals a lot and an honest image without political agenda can be communicated with others through cinema.’”
To read the entire article:
Nour Samaha, Filmmakers Need to Create an Arab Image, The National, 31 October 2008.
Dr Geoff Pound
Image: Director/actor Nadine Labaki in a scene from the 2007 film Caramel (Courtesy of The National at the above link); Poster of the Lebanese film, Caramel.
