Qantara.de - Dialog mit der islamischen Welt

Algeria's young filmmakers are turning their attention to making films that engage with the country's violent past. Christopher Resch met up with three of themMore

Before modern guidance systems were invented, people navigated their way around the world using the stars. In her debut novel, "The Map of Salt and Stars", Jennifer Zeynab Joukhadar reveals that while the heavens may be one means of finding your way around, they aren't the only one. Richard Marcus read the bookMore

Iranian actors, Indian directors and a Hollywood icon have come together in Tehran at Asia's oldest film festival. Theresa Tropper spoke with the festival's director, Reza MirkarimiMore

French film-maker and activist Axel Salvatori-Sinz, whose documentary "The Shebabs of Yarmouk" (2013) earned him international acclaim, died tragically from cancer at the beginning of 2018, aged just 36. Palestinian singer Reem Kelani, who worked on the music for the film, penned this obituary for Qantara.deMore

Once practiced by village women across Palestine, "tatreez" has become a symbol of women's resistance, identity and heritage. However, as Abbadi points out in an interview with Jan Tomes, this unique piece of Palestinian cultural heritage is now in danger of dying outMore

Jazz made its way into Iran, along with a host of other foreign influences, during the 1960s. In the decade that followed, the music's exposure on Iranian radio helped it achieve a measure of popularity – until the Islamic Revolution came along, a social caesura that brought a long-term ban on secular music. By Bernd G. SchmitzMore

Nowadays credited to a fifteenth-century Egyptian polymath called Jalal adʹDin al-Suyuti, "The Book of Exposition" is an exploration of promiscuity under the societal constraints of the Arab-Islamic world, using bawdy and salacious scenarios to stimulate and evoke fantasies in the readerʹs mind. By Sherif DhaimishMore

With their second album, "Temet", Imarhan has achieved something of an organic progression from the traditional Tamasheq sound, melding musical influences – absorbed from an increasingly urbanised existence – to create something new. Review by Richard MarcusMore

Based in Switzerland, Syrian musician Bahur Ghazi has created an exciting synthesis of traditional Arabic music and jazz improvisation. Together with his band, Palmyra, he tells of his longing for peace in his homeland. By Stefan FranzenMore