Cinéma Arabe: the best Arab films of the moment

From May 26 till June 8 2011, the fourth edition of Cinéma Arabe is taking place in Amsterdam, Utrecht, Den Haag and Maastricht. Two weeks filled with the best Arab films of the moment: recent and unreleased features and documentaries illustrating life in contemporary Middle East and Maghreb.

With support from SICA, Cinéma Arabe is organising debates following two screenings in Filmhuis Rialto in Amsterdam.

28 May: Family Matters
The screening of Egyptian Maidens on Saturday the 28th of May at 13:00hrs at Rialto will be followed by a debate on the dilemma which many women from Arab families face: the difficult choice between loyalty towards the family and the desire for personal freedom. The debate will be attended by actress Saba Mubarak and director Mohamed Amin of Egyptian Maidens and writer Naema Tahir. It will be held in English and will be led by Sanna Andréa-Dia.

In Egyptian Maidens, the unmarried cousins Hanan and Dalia are facing a huge dilemma on the verge of their 30th birthdays: how to still find a husband at their age. In a male dominated society like Egypt, marriage is still the most important precondition for women to gain respect and a certain amount of personal freedom. Moreover: no marriage means no sex. Egyptian Maidens offers whitty commentary on this situation and also investigates other aspects of Egyptian society.

29 May: Arab Spring
Following the screening of Microphone on Sunday the 29th of May at 13.00hrs, Cinéma Arabe will organise a debate about democracy in the Arab. What does democracy mean to ordinary citizens in Arab countries? Which role should Europe play in this process? And what does it all mean in relation to the development of the arts?

The debate will be held in English and led by Tarik Yousif. The panel consists of Khaled Abol Naga, actor and producer of Microphone and actively involved in Mohamed el-Baradei’s political movement; Volkskrant-journalist Paul Brill and Middle East expert Maarten Jan Hijmans.

The film Microphone offers a glimpse into a part of the cultural life of the city of Alexandria that is still largely unknown to the West: the underground scene of grafitti artists, skaters, hiphop collectives and unruly bands. It becomes clear that there is little space for alternative culture in conservative Egyptian society, but filmmaker Ahmed Abdallah puts it into the spotlight.