The biggest problem filmmakers who shoot comedies face is that it is quite difficult to retain the hilarity and keep the audience laughing for the duration of a feature. The solution most find is to switch to drama at some point, with the movies quite frequently ending up as such despite their initial premises. Maha Haj, however, manages to both retain the comedy until the end, and to transition smoothly towards drama after a point in impressive fashion, through a great script that won the best screenplay prize at Cannes (Un Certain Regard) in 2022.
Mediterranean Fever screened at Warsaw Film Festival
40+ aspiring writer Waleed’s life is in shambles. He cannot finish his novel, no matter what he does, and his chronic depression is making things difficult for both him and his family, including his wife, teenage daughter and younger son. His wife wants one more child but he cannot even hear about it,...
Mediterranean Fever screened at Warsaw Film Festival
40+ aspiring writer Waleed’s life is in shambles. He cannot finish his novel, no matter what he does, and his chronic depression is making things difficult for both him and his family, including his wife, teenage daughter and younger son. His wife wants one more child but he cannot even hear about it,...
- 10/31/2022
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
For four minutes of curator Sam Abbas’ 58-minute collection of docushorts from several European and American cinematographers, the camera sits on wrinkled bed sheets. A piano plays, with a softness that encompasses the meditative nature of Erēmīta (Anthologies). With more background knowledge, Erēmīta should grow in one’s estimation. All proceeds will go to Amnesty International. Each filmmaker had final cut on their short, and without much of a prompt besides the idea to use a cell phone to film, the mini-movies tell pandemic stories in diverse ways, to varying results.
Combining work from cinematographers with wider filmographies like Ashley Connor and Alexis Zabé (The Florida Project) with director Abel Ferrara’s go-to cameraman Stefano Falivene and others like Antoine Héberlé and Soledad Rodríguez, Abbas organizes a reflective, pensive hour of cinema. The documentaries range from a closer look––with interviews––at those living on the Venice Boardwalk (Zabé’s...
Combining work from cinematographers with wider filmographies like Ashley Connor and Alexis Zabé (The Florida Project) with director Abel Ferrara’s go-to cameraman Stefano Falivene and others like Antoine Héberlé and Soledad Rodríguez, Abbas organizes a reflective, pensive hour of cinema. The documentaries range from a closer look––with interviews––at those living on the Venice Boardwalk (Zabé’s...
- 2/26/2021
- by Michael Frank
- The Film Stage
Alexis Zabé’s mini-doc about a Venice Beach homeless community is the pick of this studiously serious grab-bag of shorts shot in lockdown
Do not adjust your set. The long pauses of black screen during this studiedly serious anthology of experimental shorts made by cinematographers during the pandemic lockdown are deliberate. It’s been put together by the American-Egyptian director Sam Abbas, who invited five cinematographers to take part in his lockdown challenge, shooting a film on their phones. The result feels a bit like being fed a plate of arthouse vegetables, a collection of not always easy-to-watch films, randomly connected and with a total running time of 58 minutes that, to be honest, is a bit of a slog.
The opening film is a purely experimental piece by Soledad Rodríguez, her camera prowling hungrily for images. She uses a filter or effect that makes even ordinary images look unsettlingly...
Do not adjust your set. The long pauses of black screen during this studiedly serious anthology of experimental shorts made by cinematographers during the pandemic lockdown are deliberate. It’s been put together by the American-Egyptian director Sam Abbas, who invited five cinematographers to take part in his lockdown challenge, shooting a film on their phones. The result feels a bit like being fed a plate of arthouse vegetables, a collection of not always easy-to-watch films, randomly connected and with a total running time of 58 minutes that, to be honest, is a bit of a slog.
The opening film is a purely experimental piece by Soledad Rodríguez, her camera prowling hungrily for images. She uses a filter or effect that makes even ordinary images look unsettlingly...
- 2/22/2021
- by Cath Clarke
- The Guardian - Film News
An early promo trailer has debuted for an experimental pandemic project called Erēmīta (Anthologies) (the word "Erēmīta" translates to "Hermit" in Latvian). This was conceived by Egyptian cinematographer / filmmaker Sam Abbas, and is an anthology of short docs intertwined with literature composed during the 2020 pandemic by leading DPs. Abbas explains: "I, like many others, get very excited about using certain cameras, lenses, conversations with the cinematographer, colorists, sound designers but really, everyone I work with! But when it comes down to it, if needed, cinema can be made under any circumstances... We can only make a film virtually... We all share two main things: passion and a plethora of time." Each Dp oversaw their individual film, having final cut for their piece. "There is no theme, film whatever you want, however you want with whomever you want." Featuring footage from Alexis Zabé, Ashley Connor, Antoine Héberlé, Sam Abbas, Soledad Rodríguez,...
- 1/25/2021
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
“There is no theme. Film whatever you want, however you want, with whomever you want.” This is the message that Egyptian filmmaker Sam Abbas sent to his favorite cinematographers as an invitation to contribute to the new film Erēmīta (Anthologies). Directors of photography from five countries––USA, France, Argentina, Italy, and the UK––answered the call and today we’re pleased to debut the exclusive trailer for the anthology project.
Featuring contributions from Abbas (Alia’s Birth, Marie, The Wedding), Alexis Zabe (The Florida Project, Silent Light, Post Tenebras Lux), Antoine Héberlé (A Son, My Favourite Fabric, GriGris), Ashley Connor (Madeline’s Madeline, The Miseducation of Cameron Post, The Death of Dick Long), Soledad Rodríguez (Pendular, Maternal, The Student), Stefano Falivene (Siberia, Pasolini, Mary), the zero-budget production will now get a release next month on VOD and Virtual Cinemas with all profits going entirely to a charity the team will choose.
Featuring contributions from Abbas (Alia’s Birth, Marie, The Wedding), Alexis Zabe (The Florida Project, Silent Light, Post Tenebras Lux), Antoine Héberlé (A Son, My Favourite Fabric, GriGris), Ashley Connor (Madeline’s Madeline, The Miseducation of Cameron Post, The Death of Dick Long), Soledad Rodríguez (Pendular, Maternal, The Student), Stefano Falivene (Siberia, Pasolini, Mary), the zero-budget production will now get a release next month on VOD and Virtual Cinemas with all profits going entirely to a charity the team will choose.
- 1/25/2021
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Egyptian filmmaker Sam Abbas made a splash when he released his queer-themed movie “The Wedding” in secret locations across the Middle East via his Egypt-based ArabQ shingle. The director is now starting a new company in Paris.
Abbas, who is Egypt-born and until recently lived in New York, drew some media attention in 2018 with “The Wedding,” which he wrote, directed and starred in as a young closeted Muslim man from Brooklyn who, while planning to marry his American girlfriend — played by Canada’s Nikohl Boosheri — is having affairs with other men.
“The Wedding” played in secret speakeasy-type venues by invitation only in Turkey, Lebanon, Tunisia and Egypt via ArabQ, Abbas claimed, which helped prompt some publicity when the film briefly screened in New York to unenthusiastic reviews. Variety’s Jay Weissberg called “The Wedding” “a dull slice of Lower Manhattan mumblecore.”
Still, the ArabQ initiative was bold since LGBTQ people...
Abbas, who is Egypt-born and until recently lived in New York, drew some media attention in 2018 with “The Wedding,” which he wrote, directed and starred in as a young closeted Muslim man from Brooklyn who, while planning to marry his American girlfriend — played by Canada’s Nikohl Boosheri — is having affairs with other men.
“The Wedding” played in secret speakeasy-type venues by invitation only in Turkey, Lebanon, Tunisia and Egypt via ArabQ, Abbas claimed, which helped prompt some publicity when the film briefly screened in New York to unenthusiastic reviews. Variety’s Jay Weissberg called “The Wedding” “a dull slice of Lower Manhattan mumblecore.”
Still, the ArabQ initiative was bold since LGBTQ people...
- 10/28/2020
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Egyptian filmmaker Sam Abbas has teamed with leading cinematographers from around the world to create the documentary “Erēmīta (Anthologies).”
The anthology was shot during the coronavirus pandemic lockdown and will feature contributions from the following DPs: Alexis Zabé, Chayse Irvin Ashley Connor Soledad Rodríguez Stefano Falivene Antoine Héberlé Benoît Dervaux (“The Unknown Girl”) and Sam Abbas.
Leading the project, Abbas said, “I, like many others, get very excited about using certain cameras, lenses, conversations with the cinematographer, colorists, sound designers but really, everyone I work with! But when it comes down to it, if needed, cinema can be made under any circumstances. This is a circumstance where we can only make a film virtually if we want to collaborate. We all share two main things: passion and a plethora of time.”
Each cinematographer oversaw their project, having final cut for their individual piece. Abbas curated the entire project adding, “There is no theme,...
The anthology was shot during the coronavirus pandemic lockdown and will feature contributions from the following DPs: Alexis Zabé, Chayse Irvin Ashley Connor Soledad Rodríguez Stefano Falivene Antoine Héberlé Benoît Dervaux (“The Unknown Girl”) and Sam Abbas.
Leading the project, Abbas said, “I, like many others, get very excited about using certain cameras, lenses, conversations with the cinematographer, colorists, sound designers but really, everyone I work with! But when it comes down to it, if needed, cinema can be made under any circumstances. This is a circumstance where we can only make a film virtually if we want to collaborate. We all share two main things: passion and a plethora of time.”
Each cinematographer oversaw their project, having final cut for their individual piece. Abbas curated the entire project adding, “There is no theme,...
- 7/30/2020
- by Jazz Tangcay
- Variety Film + TV
Salvatore Esposito, the Italian star who plays young mob boss Genny Savastano in Italy’s hit TV series “Gomorrah,” will soon be hitting the big screen toplining upcoming drama “The Stonebreaker” by twin directorial duo Gianluca and Massimiliano De Serio, who are known internationally for “Seven Acts of Mercy.”
The De Serio twins are now in post on “Stonebreaker” in which Esposito plays Giuseppe an exploited laborer in Italy’s South contending with raising his young son after the sudden death of the kid’s mother who is also Giuseppe’s wife.
The twist is that Giuseppe, who is blind in one eye, promises his son that his mother will come back from the dead. He must find a way to keep this promise.
Producer Alessandro Borrelli, who presented the pic to buyers in the What’s Next Italy section at Rome’s Mia market, says “Stonebreaker” combines strong social...
The De Serio twins are now in post on “Stonebreaker” in which Esposito plays Giuseppe an exploited laborer in Italy’s South contending with raising his young son after the sudden death of the kid’s mother who is also Giuseppe’s wife.
The twist is that Giuseppe, who is blind in one eye, promises his son that his mother will come back from the dead. He must find a way to keep this promise.
Producer Alessandro Borrelli, who presented the pic to buyers in the What’s Next Italy section at Rome’s Mia market, says “Stonebreaker” combines strong social...
- 10/19/2019
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Manal Issa stars as woman who embarks on journey of self-discovery in brothel in revolutionary Damascus.
Syrian filmmaker Gaya Jiji’s long-gestated drama My Favourite Fabric, about a young woman’s voyage of self-discovery in a Damascus brothel on the eve of Syria’s civil war, has started shooting in Istanbul.
Set against the Syrian capital in the spring of 2011, the feature revolves around 25-year-old Nahla, a young woman who feels stifled by her humdrum life.
An arranged marriage to Us-based Syrian expat Samir offers a ticket to a new existence but he unexpectedly he selects her younger sister, the more docile Myriam, to be his bride.
Following Samir’s rejection, Nahla strikes-up a friendship with a new neighbour, Madame Jiji. This mysterious figure, she discovers, runs a brothel. Fascinated by this environment, Nahla embarks on a journey of self-discovery.
”Belle De Jour was a source of an inspiration,” says Jiji referring to Luis Bunuel’s 1967 classic...
Syrian filmmaker Gaya Jiji’s long-gestated drama My Favourite Fabric, about a young woman’s voyage of self-discovery in a Damascus brothel on the eve of Syria’s civil war, has started shooting in Istanbul.
Set against the Syrian capital in the spring of 2011, the feature revolves around 25-year-old Nahla, a young woman who feels stifled by her humdrum life.
An arranged marriage to Us-based Syrian expat Samir offers a ticket to a new existence but he unexpectedly he selects her younger sister, the more docile Myriam, to be his bride.
Following Samir’s rejection, Nahla strikes-up a friendship with a new neighbour, Madame Jiji. This mysterious figure, she discovers, runs a brothel. Fascinated by this environment, Nahla embarks on a journey of self-discovery.
”Belle De Jour was a source of an inspiration,” says Jiji referring to Luis Bunuel’s 1967 classic...
- 6/14/2017
- ScreenDaily
Manal Issa stars as woman who embarks on journey of self-discovery in brothel in revolutionary Damascus.
Syrian filmmaker Gaya Jiji’s long-gestated drama My Favourite Fabric, about a young woman’s voyage of self-discovery in a Damascus brothel on the eve of Syria’s civil war, has started shooting in Istanbul.
Set against the Syrian capital in the spring of 2011, the feature revolves around 25-year-old Nahla, a young woman who feels stifled by her humdrum life.
An arranged marriage to Us-based Syrian expat Samir offers a ticket to a new existence but he unexpectedly he selects her younger sister, the more docile Myriam, to be his bride.
Following Samir’s rejection, Nahla strikes-up a friendship with a new neighbour, Madame Jiji. This mysterious figure, she discovers, runs a brothel. Fascinated by this environment, Nahla embarks on a journey of self-discovery.
”Belle Du Jour was a source of an inspiration,” says Jiji referring to Luis Bunuel’s 1967 classic...
Syrian filmmaker Gaya Jiji’s long-gestated drama My Favourite Fabric, about a young woman’s voyage of self-discovery in a Damascus brothel on the eve of Syria’s civil war, has started shooting in Istanbul.
Set against the Syrian capital in the spring of 2011, the feature revolves around 25-year-old Nahla, a young woman who feels stifled by her humdrum life.
An arranged marriage to Us-based Syrian expat Samir offers a ticket to a new existence but he unexpectedly he selects her younger sister, the more docile Myriam, to be his bride.
Following Samir’s rejection, Nahla strikes-up a friendship with a new neighbour, Madame Jiji. This mysterious figure, she discovers, runs a brothel. Fascinated by this environment, Nahla embarks on a journey of self-discovery.
”Belle Du Jour was a source of an inspiration,” says Jiji referring to Luis Bunuel’s 1967 classic...
- 6/14/2017
- ScreenDaily
Following a fall festival premiere at Venice, a U.S. trailer has arrived for A Woman’s Life (Une Vie), the latest drama from Stéphane Brizé (The Measure of a Man), which Kino Lorber will release this May. Shot in the aesthetically-pleasing 4:3 aspect ratio (where are my Ida fans at?!), cinematographer Antoine Héberlé‘s intimate portraits are on full display amidst a delicate and ominous trailer that hints at the film’s crueler side.
We said in our review from Venice, “This is the kind of thing Lars Von Trier usual does very well. Take a complex, apparently fragile, and slightly naïve female lead; put her through the ringer; and let the audience mull over whether she’s a character who is inherently weak or strong. You sense Brizé is attempting something similar but his Jeanne is a blank canvas; a brick wall; a vaguely soggy piece of tarpaulin,...
We said in our review from Venice, “This is the kind of thing Lars Von Trier usual does very well. Take a complex, apparently fragile, and slightly naïve female lead; put her through the ringer; and let the audience mull over whether she’s a character who is inherently weak or strong. You sense Brizé is attempting something similar but his Jeanne is a blank canvas; a brick wall; a vaguely soggy piece of tarpaulin,...
- 3/29/2017
- by Mike Mazzanti
- The Film Stage
★★★☆☆ Mahamat-Saleh Haroun's latest feature, Grigris (2013), recounts a tale of hope against despair in the director's native country of Chad. It tells the story of the titular Grigris (played by Souleymane Deme), a young man whose ambition is to be a dancer despite having a paralysed leg. He's a generous and positive young man who helps out his uncle (Marius Yelolo), is a budding photographer and prays when his mother pesters him into doing so. However, his real passion is for dance. At the local disco he's something of a sensation, strutting his stuff and earning some money by passing a hat around afterwards.
Things seem to be looking up when Mimi (Anaïs Monory), a beautiful local girl, comes by to have some modelling shots taken. Grigris is clearly smitten. However, his Uncle Ajoub suddenly falls ill and the hospital bills mount to impossible levels. Desperate for a solution, Grigris...
Things seem to be looking up when Mimi (Anaïs Monory), a beautiful local girl, comes by to have some modelling shots taken. Grigris is clearly smitten. However, his Uncle Ajoub suddenly falls ill and the hospital bills mount to impossible levels. Desperate for a solution, Grigris...
- 10/14/2013
- by CineVue UK
- CineVue
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