 |
Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, August 2008, page 63 Diplomatic Doings Jordanian Embassy Holds Screening for Award-Winning Film
THE JORDANIAN Embassy in Washington, DC presented a May 20 screening of “Captain Abu Raed,” followed by a session with the film’s writer/director and executive producer. The first Jordanian feature-length film to be exported to world cinemas, “Captain Abu Raed” already has received critical acclaim, winning awards at Sundance and the Dubai International Film Festival. After playing for 10 weeks in Jordan it will continue to tour the festival circuit before selecting a U.S. distributor later this year. The film is the touching story of a widower named Abu Raed (played by Jordanian-British actor Nadem Sawalha) who has worked for years as a custodian at Amman’s international airport. When neighborhood children mistake him for a real pilot, he befriends them with imaginary tales of his travels around the world. As this formerly solitary man becomes a part of the lives of those around him, events develop that change their lives forever. “Captain Abu Raed” is the first feature film for writer and director Amin Matalqa, who grew up in Jordan before moving to the U.S. for his education. Executive producer David Pritchard had nothing but praise for his young director. “Amin wrote 31 drafts of a 100-page script,” Pritchard recalled, “and each time he did something that was very telling about where his talents lie—he kept taking dialogue out.” This, the producer explained, gave the film space to breath and room to develop nuance and subtlety in the characters. The performances from the child actors are among the many strengths that make “Captain Abu Raed” such a complete film. Yet casting the children was unconventional, to say the least. Matalqa purposely held open auditions in Palestinian refugee camps and charity centers in Jordan to select his young actors, none of whom had prior acting experience. Beyond that, 10 of the 12 children are orphans or live without a father in the home. Matalqa’s incorporation of children with few opportunities parallels the film’s theme of hope in a very real way. Beyond the salaries the children received, he and Pritchard continue their support, and the two main child actors have secured places in the prestigious King’s Academy boarding school in Jordan.
The initial cast was all boys until a vibrant young girl from a camp kicked open the door to the casting room and said, “You’re here making a movie and I’m going to be in it.” Matalqa hadn’t written any lines for young girls into the script, but he was so impressed by her tenacity that he gave in on the spot. She brought another girl with her the following day, who also worked her way into the film. “Talk about feminism,” Matalqa said as he recalled the young actresses’ bright and indomitable presence on the set. Perhaps the biggest strength is the cross-cultural appeal of a movie made in Jordan about Jordanians. “Someone said it’s an ode to Amman,” said Matalqa, and indeed “Captain Abu Raed” perfectly captures the rhythm and diversity of Jordan’s capital. But non-Arab audiences also have found many aspects of their own cultures in the characters and their trials. “I’ve had Russians tell me that it’s a film about Russia,” Matalqa noted. “We wanted to capture Amman, but wanted to be universal at the same time.” Added Pritchard, “We screened this during Sundance for 1,200 American high school students. During the movie all 1,200 kids were so into it that you could hear a pin drop.” After the screening, actress Rana Sultan, who plays a pilot who befriends Abu Raed, spoke with the crowd. “When she told them she was Muslim there was an audible gasp,” Pritchard recalled. Clearly she was not their image of a Muslim. “As the theater emptied there were crowds of young girls around her asking for her autograph,” he said. With its true Arab voice, the film is a positive antithesis to the usual treatment of Arabs in Western cinema. In the current political climate, an apolitical and heartfelt story emanating from the Middle East is a relief in and of itself. But the real achievement is just how good a movie it is. Ultimately, “Captain Abu Raed” accomplishes what only great movies can in the way the story and its personalities remain with the viewer long after the credits are done and the lights have come up. For more information visit <www.captainaburaed.com>. —Josh Walsh |
||||||||||
