Ciclo de cine Caricaturas diabólicas / La democracia dormita y Shafeen.com vigila
Dirs. Karsten Kjaer, Dinamarca, 52 Min., 2007 / Leila Menjou y Sheriel Fahmy, Egipto, 52 Min., 2007 / Películas en inglés
Bloody cartoons
(Teuflische Karikaturen)
The uproar over the Mohammed cartoons made it clear that 12 drawings in a local paper in Denmark were enough to drag the tiny land into direct confrontation with Muslims across the whole world. The director filmed in Lebanon, Iran, Syria, Qatar, France, Turkey, Germany and in Denmark and spoke to the central figures involved in the cartoon crisis.The director travels across the globe to meet activists protesting against the cartoons. He investigates whether they really are true believers in what they are fighting for, people simply pretending to be outraged, or campaigners being controlled from elsewhere. In fact, many of the people protesting against the cartoons have never even seen them. The film also tries to pinpoint inconsistencies in the West’s own values and taboos. What is a taboo these days in the West? The Danish newspaper, the Jyllands Posten, tries to claim that Western Europe’s refusal to deny the Holocaust is one such taboo. The newspaper even intended to print a series of satirical holocaust cartoons which appeared in an Iranian exhibition. But can the strategic denial of something which has been historically proven really be compared with satirical interpretations of something from the present?
About the director
The director KARSTEN KJAER is a journalist and producer, who worked as a foreign correspondent for “World Media” before returning to television. He has produced over 200 programmes for Danish and European television, as well as numerous programmes examining foreign affairs, many focusing on the Middle East. Karsten is the founder and owner of an independent production company, Freeport Film, based in Copenhagen. He is famous for his use of humour, satire and unusual methods when it comes to dealing with sensitive political and cultural topics.
Egypt - we are watching you
(Demokratie schläft, Shayfeen.com wacht)
After more than 24 years with President Mubarak at the helm, Egypt is on the brink of parliamentary elections. Three women have founded a grassroots movement with the aim of empowering the public. Their initiative, Shayfeen.com (We’re watching you), fights for human rights, freedom of speech and a bureaucracy which is committed to supporting citizens and the constitution, instead of promoting its own interests.
The film follows the grassroots movement to one of the high points of its crusade: the campaign against vote rigging, for the protection of wrongfully threatened judges and the establishment of an independent judiciary. It portrays the civil courage of women who use their position in society to educate the people about the rights they possess, the rights they are due, and the rights they require to ensure the nation of Egypt embraces modernity and does not have to play “catch-up” at some point down the line. The three women often win their battles, supported by a broad spectrum of the population, who are prepared to risk imprisonment to attain Shayfeen.com’s goals. But time and again, the three women must also fight losing battles against a virtually overpowering combination of inefficiency and patriarchalism.
About the directors
Director Sherief Elkatsha was born in the US and grew up in Cairo, Egypt. He graduated from Boston University with a BA in Film Production and has worked on numerous television productions, ranging from music videos with Wyclef Jean and The Roots to the Discovery Channel’s “Eco-Challenge”. His documentary, “Butts Out”, which follows smokers and their difficult and comical struggles to quit, won the Best Documentary award at the 2006 New England Film and Video Festival. In 2006 he was selected for the Berlinale Talent Campus.
Director Leila Menjou was born in Cairo and obtained a degree in directing from the Cairo Film School. She has worked on numerous films, including the award-winning “Mothers of the Desert”, which opened the IDFA and won first prize at the Timbuktu Film Festival.