FILM SCREENING AND Q&A WITH DIRECTOR AMMAR AL-BEIK VIA SKYPE FROM GERMANY
On Sunday 16th July 2017, we screened La Dolce Syria: A Short Film Trilogy by Ammar al-Beik at International Anthony Burgess Foundation, Manchester. La Dolce Siria is satirical response to Federico Fellini’s 1960 comedy-drama La Dolce Vita, this film unfolds as a poignant narrative of the dramatic events affecting Syria and leading to the extinction of love and happiness, which Fellini’s protagonist Marcello Rubini was unsuccessfully looking for decades ago. “Vita’ is not ‘dolce’ in Syria Federico! No fireworks around the tent Federico. Scud and bombs are the fireworks that we recognise, my friend. No one can tame the lion here in this tent. It’s smashing everything and everyone. I forgot to tell this earlier: Lion in Arabic means Assad’.
The trilogy was well received by audience and was followed by Q & A with director Ammar al-Beik via Skype from Germany.
Ammar al-Beik
Born in Damascus in 1972 and currently in exile in Berlin, al-Beik’s work is often alluding to socio-political issues, and is inspired by the details of his surroundings as he seeks to reveal the complexities of human relationships. He has effortlessly moved between media with an acute sense of capturing narrative structures through subtle nuance and a commitment to the potential of art as an act of.
With the start of the Syrian uprising, al-Beik produced a significant body of work in support of popular resistance, including graphic and digital images and several short films that resume his interest in everyday life while presenting a critical look at the events that led to the country’s demise.
For nearly two decades, al-Beik has contributed to exhibitions and programmes worldwide in Germany, France, USA, Japan, South Korea, among others. He has received several international awards such as Venice Film Festival (2006) and the Busan international short film festival (2012).
Commentaires