Stories about Film from December, 2008
Southeast Asia: Controversies and tragedies of 2008
In the previous post (Southeast Asia: Newsmakers of 2008), I wrote about the major events that took place in Southeast Asia. In this article, I will highlight other stories which became controversial as well.
Macedonia Timeless
On December 24, 2008, there was a presentation of a promotional video for Macedonia – “Macedonia Timeless.” The video is written and directed by Milcho Manchevski (an Academy Award nominee in 1995), and its purpose is to promote Macedonia as a tourist destination. The video will be aired on CNN, and a dozen countries in eight different languages. Elena Ignatova reviews bloggers' reactions to the video.
Gaza/Sderot: Israel and Palestine together on video
The Gaza/Sderot: Life in Spite of Everything Project is one of the prime examples of the variety of ways a bridge between different cultures and world-views can be created through online media. In this project created by ARTE.tv, a French-German cultural television station, twelve people going on their day to day business on either side of a violent border were exposed on a website for ten week project which ended on December 23rd. The two minute videos documented snippets of the lives of 6 characters in Gaza, Palestine and 6 characters on the other side of the border in Sderot, Israel during two months.
Venezuela: Telling the Country's History Through Film
A group of young Venezuelan filmmakers have succeeded in illustrating some of the country's history or adapting famous pieces of literature through films that have been well-received by the general public. Many Venezuelan movies in the past are considered extremely violent, and the emergence of these new kinds of films are showing new expressions of creativity.
Bosnia & Herzegovina: More on “Resolution 819″
More on Resolution 819, the film, at Cafe Turco – here, here, and here.
Israel: Celebrating Hanukkah with YouTube
Every year at this time, Jews look forward to Hanukkah, the festival of lights. Jacob Richman posts a list of 70 Hanukkah videos on YouTube, among them is an old favorite: Adam Sandler's “Hanukkah Song.”
Abu Hadeed: Egypt's first Computer Game
Abu Hadeed is Egypt's first original computer game. Zeinobia writes about the copyrights issues and the concept saying:”It is the first game to be based upon an Egyptian cinematic character. Originally it was based on Boha, the hero of comedian Mohamed Saad’s film “Boha”. It is an odd choice to me...
Bolivia: The Business of Digital Piracy in El Alto
Music and movie piracy in Bolivia is commonplace. Wilfredo Jordán takes a look at the business in El Alto, Bolivia and how many vendors travel to the Peruvian border to purchase goods to resell [es].
New film on Philippine revolution
FeudArt posts trailers and a backgrounder of Baler, a new film based on events during the Philippine revolution against Spanish colonizers at the end of the 19th Century.
Costa Rica: Call for Collaborative Christmas Video
Costa Rican online humour collective nosedecirlaerre.com which translates into "I can´t pronounce the R" has set out a call for participation from Costa Ricans and those familiar with their culture to create a collaborative video for Christmas. The campaign is called Uniting Ticos for Christmas and the requirements are quite simple: dancing in the Costa Rican style of "swing criollo" the popular end of the year song Jugo de Piña and saying something in Costa Rican slang, on video.
Western Sahara: Cubarawis
Many saharaui children, thanks to international cooperation with Cuba, travel each year to study until they graduate from university. Then, they return to work for their Western Sahara. The Caribbean is completely different from the desert, not only because of geography, but also because of the nature of the people themselves. Cubans have rhythm in their veins and are dancing all the time. Beduins are sober, quiet and reflective. However, in the end, the exchange is worthy in both ways, as Renata Avila explains.
Guyana: Future Flooding
Guyana Providence Stadium extends kudos to two local teens who made a documentary about the potential effects of flooding in Guyana should current weather patterns continue.
India: Cashing In On Mumbai Terror Attacks
Santosh at Über Desi is disturbed by the news that Bollywood producers are trying to cash in on Mumbai terror attacks by registering movie names based on the tragedy.
Cuba: García Márquez Gives Scriptwriting Workshop
In Cuba, Zenia Regalado writes about Colombian author Gabriel García Márquez’ annual workshop given at Havana's International School of Theater and Television [es]. Ten students participate in the workshop with the aim of writing a movie script.
Dominican Republic: Thoughts on the Local Film Industry
Even though new technologies are making it easier to make movies, film in the Dominican Republic has a long way to go, writes Rocío Díaz of Monaco [es].
Cuba: Gabo in Havana
Both Yohandry's Weblog (ES) and Havana Times blog about Nobel Laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez's visit to Cuba “for the final days of the Havana Film Festival, an annual event that he rarely misses.”
Playing for Change: Peace Through Music
MeetJohnSong brings to our attention a global collaborative musical project called Playing for Change: Peace through Music. The concept behind it is that music is a common uniting factor between different cultures, ethnicities and regions.The film and music will be available in 2009, and more information on the project can be found on the Playing for Change website.
China: Traci Lords at Hong Kong Movie
Human Flesh search engine from mainland China managed to dig up the details of an adult movie appeared at one of Stephen Chow's popular movie. The female figure is Traci Lords. See ESWN for details.
Armenia: CNN Genocide Coverage Controversy
Too short for Armenians and too long for the Turkish government, a two-hour CNN documentary by Christiane Amanpour on genocide includes a 45-second mention of the WWI extermination of Ottoman Empire's indigenous Armenian population. Premiered on December 4, 2008, Scream Bloody Murder has made many Armenian bloggers angry.
Iran: Film Festival Will Honor Jewish Actor
Iran's 27th Fajr International Film Festival will honor actor Paul Newman, who died this year, Israelity notes. In Israel, Newman's best known work is “Exodus,” the story of the State's founding.
Cuba: Two Sides of Che?
Havana-based Circles Robinson wonders how Cuban audiences will react to the new film about Che Guevara, while diaspora blogger Uncommon Sense advises readers to enroll in “The Ché Guevara Re-Education Program.”
