Cinema
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Interview with the Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof
"Devils donʹt exist"
Mohammad Rasoulof's "There Is No Evil" won the main prize at the Berlinale. Maryam Mirza talked to the director, who is currently forbidden from leaving Iran, about his film
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International Women’s Day
Ainouz' "Nardjes A." – hope as a form of resistance
Focussing on the Algerian protest movement, "Nardjes A." by Karim Ainouz, is about the universal power of hope to change the social and political status quo in the Maghreb country. By Rene Wildangel
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Winner of the Berlinale 2020: "Sheytan Vojud Nadarad"
There is no evil, unless it's perpetrated
Mohammad Rasoulof’s film "Sheytan Vojud Nadarad" (There is No Evil) won the Berlinale, perpetuating the robust presence of Iranian cinema at the festival during the post-Kosslick era. The Golden Bear went to a powerful episodic film addressing the issue of difficult decisions and their consequences. In Iran, and everywhere else. By Rene Wildangel
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Interview with Kurdish director Selim Yildiz
When one dies, the next goes up into the mountains
In his film “Dialogue“, Selim Yildiz addresses a social taboo which is a reality for many Kurds in Turkey: young men suddenly disappear and joined armed groups in the mountains. Interview by Semiran Kaya
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Documentary film: "For Sama"
The girl from a country in ruins
"For Sama", the film by Waad al-Kateab and Edward Watts that was crowned best European documentary at the last European Film Awards, gives us a very personal view of the war in Syria and the suffering of the civilian population. By Schayan Riaz
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Film review: "Tlamess" by Ala Eddine Slim
Enchantment at the end of the world
"Tlamess", a visually striking experimental feature by Tunisian director Ala Eddine Slim, brings two drop-outs together in a weird, wild cohabitation in the woods: a desperate army deserter and a pregnant woman who walked away from her seemingly perfect life. By Adela Lovric
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Iran's 37th Fajr Film Festival
Politics collide with the big screen in Tehran
With prominent film makers cancelling their attendance, the organisers of Iran's flagship cultural event are under pressure. The Fajr film festival in Tehran shows how culture can be used to make a political point. By Philipp Jedicke
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Film review: Hossein Pourseifi's "Morgen sind wir frei"
Love in the time of revolution
"Morgen sind wir frei" – Tomorrow we'll be free – charts a love story under the baleful glare of a face painted on the side of a building in Tehran. It is a film about the hopes of a German-Iranian family during and after the revolution in Iran with all the pain of terror, oppression and separation. By Maryam Ansari
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Film review: Nouri Bouzidʹs ʺThe Scarecrowsʺ
Making amends is one path to healing
In his new film, award-winning Tunisian director Nouri Bouzid grapples with the traumas of women held captive by Islamist extremists, victims of the so-called ʺsexual jihadʺ in Syria. Bouzid also weighs in on the moral hypocrisy of Tunisian society, as it struggles to deal with those who have returned. By Adela Lovric
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Interview with film director Schokofeh Kamiz
"I was surprised she wasn't a bigger sensation"
In early 2015, Pakistani activist Sabeen Mahmud organised an event on missing Balochi activists in her cafe. Later that day, she was killed by two men on the streets of Karachi. The documentary film "After Sabeen" is a very personal portrait of the woman. Interview by Schayan Riaz
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Film review: "Free Trip to Egypt"
Into the great unknown
The idea of taking a group of US citizens from Trump's America on a free cultural exchange trip to Cairo, Egypt, sounds like either a lunatic plan or somebody's idea of a bad practical joke. Yet this is just what Tarek Mounib did. The film "Free Trip To Egypt" documents how he came up with the idea and implemented it. By Richard Marcus
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Retrospective of Egyptian film director Atteyat al-Abnoudy
Advocate of the people
The Egyptian filmmaker Atteyat al-Abnoudy gave a voice to those people the state had forgotten – and preserved their pride and integrity. Her work provides a picture of social injustices in Egypt since the 1970s. By Christopher Resch