New Creative Impetus for the Palestinian Film

Palestinian cinema was showcased at the last film festival in Cannes with two productions at once. One of these was "Rana's Wedding" – an extremely poetic film. Amin Farzanefar interviewed the film's director Hany Abu-Assad

"Rana's Wedding" is less severe than Elia Suleiman's burlesque film "Divine Intervention", instead coming across as a romantic and incredibly witty screen gem. Rana has to meet a 4 p.m. deadline to find and marry her clandestine boyfriend Khalil, as well as locating a registrar and witnesses to perform the ceremony.

Otherwise, she has to leave the country with her father – or marry one of the worthy suitors on his wish list. The protagonist's rebellious race through the streets of Jerusalem and Ramallah shows the country in all its beauty, without sparing the viewers the horrors of the occupation. With its pace, deadline, and love story, Hany Abu-Assad's film recalls the German hit "Run Lola Run".

The people in Palestine can't even see your films, as there are hardly any cinemas…

Hany Abu-Assad: When we have shown Palestinians the film, they really enjoyed it, because suddenly they saw one of their own as the hero of a movie and their everyday surroundings were part of a film backdrop. This was an important experience for them.

Rana is strong and she knows what she wants. She constantly gets tangled up in situations, yet remains on track. Is she representative of today's Palestinian women?

Abu-Assad: I certainly hope so! I have to admit that she isn't what you might call your average Palestinian girl, but she also isn't just totally invented. The occupation has led Palestinian women to develop an enormous awareness of their political and social situation. We have a Hany Abu-Assad was born in Nazareth in 1961. Together with Rashid Mashrawi (Curfew, Haifa), he set up Ayoul Film in the early 1990s, where he worked as a producer. In 1992, he made his first film. Since 2000, Hany Abu-Assad has lived and worked in East Jerusalem. great many aspiring women in leadership roles, such as Hanan Ashrawi, Diana Bhutto, and Areez Samar Rasmeer.

Rana's story takes place in two large cities – Ramallah and Jerusalem. Why did you decide to shoot your film on these locations?

Abu-Assad: We wanted to show Jerusalem from a particular perspective – the contrasts between the old city and the modern districts, rich and poor parts of the city, the differences in culture, architecture, and also religion. Yet, we also wanted to show Ramallah as a Palestinian city that is not far from Jerusalem, but at the same time separated by the many borders set up in between. I wanted to show that we are one and the same people, bound together, but nonetheless divided by the occupation. And it is also about showing that the barriers can't take away this feeling of solidarity.

Palestinian cinema is currently on the rise. Yet, it doesn't have a long tradition. What are the sources of your film vocabulary? What are your influences?

Abu-Assad: It's true that we have no coherent cinematographic tradition. But being without any clear territorial borders leaves us open to all kinds of influences, and we adapt the best elements. I am just as influenced by Iranian cinema as by Japanese minimalism and Hollywood romance. The main thing is that it fits into the film's conception.

Have you experienced varying reactions to ">

Abu-Assad: This has little to do with the country where it is shown. Sometimes the film is well received. Then, once again, everyone focuses on to other, more important works and you are pushed off to the side. I find it good to sometimes be in the middle of all the bustle and then to return to this dog's life in Palestine. I mean, after three days in Cannes, having to wait in line at the checkpoint like everyone else is a good experience.

Has the film already been shown in Israel?

Abu-Assad: Yes, it is currently running in the film festival in Haifa. I believe that the vast majority of the Israeli population is largely ignorant of our situation, otherwise they would have to see themselves as oppressors. They don't take any notice of Palestinians – our culture and our films are just invisible for them. There are, however, also a lot of open-minded people, who are truly good friends of mine. But that isn't the point. The point is that they are not representative of a society that refuses to accept us as equal partners having mutual respect for the needs, wishes, and visions of the other.

Last year saw two Palestinian films being shown at Cannes. How do you assess this development?

Abu-Assad: We have a great need to express and to represent. When people lose their land and dignity, they develop a sense of frustration. In Palestine, a lot of this frustration is vented in the wrong way. Others express it in art, cinema, pictures, and paintings.

The interaction between cinema and politics seems to be quite intense. Was there a time when you or other filmmakers thought of abandoning politics to focus more on private or cultural subjects – to concentrate on more "normal" topics?

Abu-Assad: When you look carefully, you will see that all of our films deal with the private sphere and "everyday life", but this "everyday life" is determined by the occupation, which can't simply be overlooked. However, in our films this remains in the background. We don't emphasize it. Yet, in order to truly portray our living conditions, we can't just ignore this discrimination and merely show characters that are bored with life.

Interview: Amin Farzanefar

Translation from German: John Bergeron