(en) France, Alternative Libertaire AL #234 - Festival: Cinemed (fr, pt)

The Cinemed is the International Mediterranean Film Festival of Montpellier. Beyond the 
single release, the festival organizes exchanges goshawks films program inviting 
filmmakers to submit their works and discuss. ---- The program is diverse and divided into 
several themes: previews, tributes, short and feature films, documentaries, animations, 
experimental. It includes nearly 200 films whose common point is a geographical area. 
Thus, the panel extends big-budget film such as Quai d'Orsay Bertrand Tavernier, small 
experimental films through a restored copy of Scarface. ---- The Cinemed is not a popular 
festival. It is aimed at an educated public, and rather expert filmmaking. As stated by 
President Henri Talvat at a conference[1]: "Fire George Fr?che would have liked the 
Cinemed dethrone the Cannes Film Festival. " However, this orientation led to attract an 
audience increasingly expert and especially brand.

Talking Cinemed in Libertarian Alternative makes sense if you stop programming. Indeed, 
the geographical area covered by the festival has grown in recent years several political 
upheavals. But cinema is often a reflection of the social and political life, it can 
sometimes illustrate better than words.

The crisis and the Arab revolutions

This is particularly true of short race against time[2], Greek film that addresses 
ironically the scale of the crisis facing the country, and thereby expresses the 
solidarity needed it needed to survive. Other films, such as The Woman in the camera[3] or 
Earth pitfall[4] address social themes, such as the role of women in an Islamic society 
and integration in Israel.

However, the cinema is not news. He knows a shift imposed by the production time. Thus 
this year, Cinemed was marked by events that took place three years ago: the Arab 
revolutions. Under 200 films, the few films that addressed this topic are few. Yet they 
staked out sufficiently the festival program to remind all the events of 2011. Especially 
since the film won the Golden Antigone, Rags and Tatters[5] is the heart of this theme: 
Egyptian prisoner has the opportunity to escape through a demonstration. His dying comrade 
tells him a cell phone where video shows responsible for the deaths of dozens of Egyptians 
in a shootout. If this film the Egyptian revolution is in the foreground, other films like 
Ladder to Damascus[6] or It's them dogs[7] tell a story against the backdrop of revolution.

Marine (AL Montpellier)

The Lab: a film broadcast

One of disseminated Cinemed film festival deserves attention: The Lab Dealers war.

Yotam Feldman for it is in this film to show a deadlock in Israeli government policy: the 
war with the Palestinians today has become indispensable to the Israeli economy. West Bank 
and Gaza are Israeli weapons laboratory, their trademark. "When Israel sells weapons, it 
has already been tested. "

Libertarian alternative had the chance to ask the director: "Work on the film began during 
my experience as a journalist in Haaretz Magazine. I then realized connections between the 
military and politics, military and economy. Documenting me, I began to think there was 
something a bit disgusting: the profit that comes from the occupation. People are really 
used to say that this occupation is defensive, you do not want to hurt them, it costs a 
lot of money. Few people realize that this is a way around the truth, the fact that in 
reality that a lot of money, the fact that it is profitable, it gains compared to the 
industry weapons and that at least 150,000 families depend Israeli occupation. I think 
that's what led me to dig deeper. And there were also Operation Cast Lead, the largest 
Israeli operation on Gaza (...) I began to think it was obvious that this was a war a 
different kind. In war or the ratio between those Israeli and Palestinian casualties was 
unthinkable 1 in 100. Twelve Israeli soldiers killed Palestinians for 1200 (...) This is a 
war that no one in Israel really aware, even if it occurs very close to us. The price for 
this war has become ridiculous, it really was easy to launch this operation and that's why 
I thought it was actually profitable today and the economic life of Israel is actually 
dependent this war and its profit. "

If you must take your hat off to Yotam Feldman. this is in great part to the interviews he 
conducted: military philosophers, mathematicians and other lieutenants speak freely about 
Israel's place in the international sale of arms and military research. Bring money to his 
country by killing the inhabitants of another is no longer a taboo in Israel today.

Marine (AL Montpellier)

[1] Roundtable Matteo Garrone.

[2] Race against the clock , Dimitra Nikolopoulou, Greece, 2012, 10 minutes, short film.

[3] The Woman with the camera , Karima Zoubir, Morocco, in 2012, 59 minutes, documentary.

[4] Land reef , Uri Kranot Michal Kranot, France / Denmark / Canada, 2013, 14 minutes, 
animation.

[5] Rags and Tatters , Ahmad Abdalla, Egypt, in 2013, one hour and 27 minutes.

[6] Ladder to Damascus , Mohamed Malas, Syria / Lebanon / Qatar 2013 1 hour 35.

[7] This is the other dogs, Hisam Ladri, Morocco, 2013 1 hour 25.