Viewing boxes with short dance films from the Middle East and North Africa
In different venues of the festival, a rotating program of films can be seen in special viewing boxes.
Program one is dedicated to the work of Khalid BenGhrib and his company Cie2k_far (Morocco) and has the theme Gold.
Program two consists of a series of films called Dance Shorts from the Middle East and North Africa. Films by artists from Lebanon, Egypt, Syria, Palestine and other countries are featured, including those of festival artists Hussein Khaddour and a number of the Badke performers.
With special thanks to Cinedans.
PROGRAM ONE: Gold
Cigarettes: a smoking tragedy
Khalid BenGhrib, Loren Palmer, Younes Atbane |Morocco|2009| 2:30’
A unique look at the proposition: ‘shall we share a cigarette?’
Mains (Hands)
Khalid BenGhrib, Loren Palmer, Younes Atbane |Morocco|2009| 3:10’
Hand and hand, hand in hand; apart and in union, hands are portrayed in both minimalistic and abstract ways in this short film.
PROGRAM TWO: Dance Shorts from the Middle East and North Africa
Point Zero
Yazeed Sayed, Hussein Khaddour | Syria | 2013| 4:05’
Filmed in the recently damaged dance studio of the High Institute of Arts in Damascus, Point Zero epitomizes the emotions of one of its dance students, Hussein Khaddour.
We Might as Well
Wafa’a Celine Halawi, Anne Gough | Lebanon | 2011 | 2’
John Berger argues that a photograph – unlike other forms of imagery – is not a rendering, an imitation or an interpretation of its subject, but an actual trace of it. We Might as Well captures traces of women’s lives within one of the few historical buildings in Beirut still standing, and offers a combination of dance, architecture, stop motion, and time-lapse cinematography.
Lastscape
Palestine | 2011 | 6:22’
This film is made by the students of the Dance on Camera workshop, hosted by Sareyyet Ramallah, during the 2011 International Dance Festival in Ramallah. Each group had 3 to 4 hours to shoot their film and about 4 to 5 hours to do the editing. The cast consisted of dancers from Sareyyet Ramallah Troupe for Music and Dance and other students from the Dance on Camera workshop. Lastscape features dancer Yazan Eweidat, who also performs in the festival’s opening performance Badke.
Beirut Flash Mob
Amin Dora | Lebanon | 2011 | 3’
On 5 March 2011, passengers and staff at Beirut Rafic Hariri International Airport experienced something remarkable when a dabke and hip-hop flash mob dance was performed to entertain them. M&C Saatchi and Beirut Duty Free created this event as part of their Take Back More campaign. The aim was to literally give the travelers the gift of a wonderful memory of Lebanon.
On the Heel Side
Palestine | 2011 | 3:18’
This film is made by the students of the Dance on Camera workshop, hosted by Sareyyet Ramallah, during the 2011 International Dance Festival in Ramallah. Each group had 3 to 4 hours to shoot their film and about 4 to 5 hours to do the editing. The cast consisted of dancers from Sareyyet Ramallah Troupe for Music and Dance and other students from the Dance on Camera workshop. On the Heel Side features dancer Salma Ataya, who also performs in the festival’s opening performance Badke.
I Am My Mother
Mohammad Abbasi | Iran | 2008 | 1′
An Iranian woman dances in her son’s body…
Contemporary Dance Night 2013
Ahmed El Gendy | Egypt | 2013 |1:35’
A trailer made by visual artist and choreographer Ahmed El Gendy for an event called Contemporary Dance Night 2013.
Mood (Mazaj)
Yazeed Sayed, Hussein Khaddour | Syria | 2013 | 2:48’
As can be seen by this video, the hiphop scene is alive in Damascus, in spite of the circumstances.
Salt In My Nose
Wafa’a Halawi, Anne Gough | Lebanon | 2012 | 5:23’
A collaborative work involving landscape artists, dancers, choreographers and filmmakers. The film intertwines movement and rural landscapes in the salt flats on the shores of north Lebanon. By exploring the relation of uncharted places on the map, the film creates new meaning at the intersections of body, environment and production.
