InfoAnda - After dark years, lights coming back on for Iraqi cinema |

Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case
Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They

Taiwan denies boycotting Australian film festival
Thursday, August 6, 2009

AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e

Merkel's support dips, regional ally resigns International
Thursday, September 3, 2009

By Sarah Marsh and Noah Barkin

BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German

Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who

Asian markets mixed after Wall Street rally
Wednesday, March 18, 2009

By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an

Close call in Cannes as prison drama edges ahead | Entertainment | | 23 May 2009
Euro is "credible," not in crisis: Trichet | 3 December 2010
Several Chinese banks face extra reserve requirement | 12 November 2010

Chess legend Kasparov takes lead in rematch vs. Karpov | 23 September 2009

Forum Views () Forum Replies ()

Read more with google mobile : After dark years, lights coming back on for Iraqi cinema |

Edition: U.S. Arabic Argentina Brazil Canada China France Germany India Italy Japan Latin America Mexico Russia Spain United Kingdom Home Business Business Home Economy Technology Media Small Business Legal Deals Earnings Social Pulse Business Video The Freeland File Aerospace & Defense Investing Simplified Markets Markets Home U.S. Markets European Markets Asian Markets Global Market Data Indices M&A Stocks Bonds Currencies Commodities Futures Funds peHUB Dividends World World Home U.S. Brazil China Euro Zone Japan Mexico Russia India Insight World Video Reuters Investigates Decoder Politics Politics Home Election 2012 Campaign Polling Supreme Court Politics Video Tech Technology Home MediaFile Science Tech Video Tech Tonic Social Pulse Opinion Opinion Home Chrystia Freeland John Lloyd Felix Salmon Jack Shafer David Rohde Nader Mousavizadeh Lucy P. Marcus Nicholas Wapshott Bethany McLean Anatole Kaletsky Edward Hadas Hugo Dixon Ian Bremmer Lawrence Summers Susan Glasser The Great Debate Steven Brill Reihan Salam Frederick Kempe Christopher Papagianis Mark Leonard Breakingviews Equities Credit Private Equity M&A Macro & Markets Politics Breakingviews Video Money Money Home Tax Break Lipper Awards 2012 Global Investing MuniLand Unstructured Finance Linda Stern Mark Miller John Wasik James Saft Analyst Research Alerts Watchlist Portfolio Stock Screener Fund Screener Personal Finance Video Money Clip Investing 201 Life Health Sports Arts Faithworld Business Traveler Entertainment Oddly Enough Lifestyle Video Pictures Pictures Home Reuters Photographers Full Focus Video Reuters TV Reuters News Article Comments (0) Follow Reuters Facebook Twitter RSS YouTube Read Emails that touched off scandal described CIA director's movements 13 Nov 2012 Anti-austerity strikes sweep Europe 7:46am EST Britain condemned for "mad house" care of schizophrenia patients 13 Nov 2012 Top Hamas commander killed in Israeli airstrike 10:55am EST Civilian social ties make Tampa desirable posting for generals 1:01am EST Discussed 168 Obama plans ”fiscal cliff” statement as showdown looms 114 Republicans say deal can be done on ”fiscal cliff” 89 Obama win shows demographic shifts working against Republicans Sponsored Links After dark years, lights coming back on for Iraqi cinema Tweet Share this Email Print Related News Former Disney CEO Eisner back in moviemaking with Universal Tue, Nov 13 2012 Iraq says Exxon to quit oilfield, ends Turkey TPAO deal Wed, Nov 7 2012 Disney to buy "Star Wars" producer for $4.05 billion Wed, Oct 31 2012 A Minute With: Rapper RZA putting on "Iron Fists" for new movie Wed, Oct 31 2012 Baghdad blasts kill more than 30 over Eid holiday Sat, Oct 27 2012 Analysis & Opinion Jab Tak Hai Jaan: Unending romance Son of Sardaar: Calculated entertainment Related Topics Entertainment » Fashion » Film » By Aseel Kami BAGHDAD | Wed Nov 14, 2012 9:04am EST BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The din of power generators, tangle of jerry-rigged electric wiring and hassle of security checkpoints are all part of the movie business in Iraq, not to mention the lack of studio space and dearth of experienced crews. But actors like Sadiq Abbas are just happy to get back to work. "The journey of a thousand miles starts with one step," Abbas said on the set of a short film shot recently in Baghdad. "Let's take this as the first step for Iraqi cinema." War and international sanctions have left most of Iraq's infrastructure and industry - including the movie industry - in shambles. Government funding would have provided the jumpstart the industry needed but it has not been a government priority; the last full length feature financed by the state was in 1990. Independent film producers have struggled on their own. That may be changing. Nine months after the last U.S. troops left, Iraq's oil industry is pumping at the highest in decades thanks to multi-billion contracts with foreign companies. Everyday life is showing signs of becoming more stable, and the government says it can now look again to funding the arts. The ministry of culture has put up $4.7 million through to next year, enough to fund 21 movies ranging from full-length features to shorts and documentaries, touching on subjects as sensitive as Shi'ite and Sunni friendships riven by sectarian rivalries and the issue of family honor. "Hopefully we can pull this off, because in Iraqi cinema history we never produced four films in one year," said Ismail al-Jubouri, the deputy head of cinema and theater department at the ministry of culture. A LONG HISTORY Iraqi cinema dates back to the 1950s, although production did not exceed more than a few films a year even then. The government's cinema department was established in 1959 but produced only two feature-length films in the next decade along with a handful of documentaries. During the 24-year rule of Saddam Hussein from 1979, the industry mainly served as a propaganda tool for his Baathist party, which also commissioned art, theatre and music. Films focused mainly on the 1980-88 Iraq-Iran war, portraying Iraq as the victor in the conflict, which ended in a stalemate and ceasefire. The film "The Long Days" told Saddam's life story. The heyday of the industry came in the 1970s, when the government established its first theatre, allocated more funds for full-length movies and attracted Arab filmmakers to help. The first technicolor film was produced in this period, "The Head", directed by Faisal al-Yassiri, who is one of those to have benefited from the government's latest funding. Iraqi civil servant Mohammed Mahdi, 40, said his mother recalls going to the cinema to watch mainly Egyptian romances with their father, leaving the children with their grandmother. "It was a romantic thing for them to go to the cinema," Mahdi said, adding with a laugh that his father always fell asleep in the middle. Their dates stopped with the advent of the war, as his father was in the military, Mahdi said. "My mother always regretted the dying of Iraqi cinema." After the U.S.-led coalition invaded in 2003 and toppled Saddam, movie archives and equipment were looted, and later sectarian violence drained the country of artistic talent. Film production slowed to a crawl and the infrastructure of the industry deteriorated. Laboratories and cameras fell into disrepair and cinemas were shuttered. Independent film production houses tried to pick up the pieces, with some notable successes such as the privately funded war film, "Son of Babylon", which won a number of international awards and was selected as Iraq's official entry for the 2011 Academy Awards. But the return of government funding means a new start for many local directors, even if the amounts are small by international standards. Under the government program, funding for full-length movies can reach as high as 1.25 billion dinars ($1.07 million) while a short film like "A Man's Tear", which featured actor Abbas in one of the lead roles, can receive up to 74 million dinars. Only 40 million dinars was allocated to the film industry from 2004 to 2012, said Qasim Mohammed Salman, the head of the ministry's cinema department and executive producer of the 21 films. The government's backing is appreciated, said Saad Abdullah, production manager of "A Man's Tear", in which two brothers, one who stayed in Iraq and one who went abroad and came back wealthy, become estranged over who will care for their mother. "I feel they want to support us. They have only given us a little but we will take what we can get," Abdullah said. THE BIG PICTURE Not everyone is impressed, however. Kasim Abid, who came back to Iraq after 2003 to teach film production, says the funding initiative is more about scoring political points than promoting local filmmakers. "It is for political propaganda, not for culture," Abid said. The government's efforts needed to be part of a coordinated, sustained plan across all the arts, agreed Mufid al-Jazairi, the chairman of the independent Iraqi Organization to Support Culture. "At a time when the private sector is weak, only the government can play that role," Jazairi said. "We need support in all cultural fields ... a base to ignite productivity that can grow over time." Many filmmakers, artists, musicians and performers also say they continue to feel the constraints of religious conservatism in the new Iraq, with Islamist parties and militias trying to impose their radical view of Islam on the arts. And even if the film industry is getting a shot in the arm, venues for showing movies are still scarce. While security is much improved, many people remain wary of public gatherings. Salman said of 82 cinemas that used to be open in Iraq, most of them in Baghdad, no more than five cinemas remain. Small private cinemas operate in some social clubs. One local director regularly uses an inflatable screen to give outdoor screenings of his productions in Baghdad. But many filmmakers are hopeful Iraqis will eventually come back to the cinemas. "It's the audience in the end who decides. They are the consumers and they are the ones who bring the money to the cinema by buying tickets," said Raad Mshatat, the director of "The Silence of the Shepherd", a full-length film. "I have high hopes Iraqi cinema will come back to life." ($1 = 1163.0000 Iraqi dinars) (Editing by Sonya Hepinstall) Entertainment Fashion Film Tweet this Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints We welcome comments that advance the story through relevant opinion, anecdotes, links and data. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. For more information on our comment policy, see http://blogs.reuters.com/fulldisclosure/2010/09/27/toward-a-more-thoughtful-conversation-on-stories/ Comments (0) Be the first to comment on reuters.com. Add yours using the box above. Edition: U.S. Arabic Argentina Brazil Canada China France Germany India Italy Japan Latin America Mexico Russia Spain United Kingdom Back to top Reuters.com Business Markets World Politics Technology Opinion Money Pictures Videos Site Index Legal Bankruptcy Law California Legal New York Legal Securities Law Support & Contact Support Corrections Connect with Reuters Twitter Facebook LinkedIn RSS Podcast Newsletters Mobile About Privacy Policy Terms of Use AdChoices Copyright Our Flagship financial information platform incorporating Reuters Insider An ultra-low latency infrastructure for electronic trading and data distribution A connected approach to governance, risk and compliance Our next generation legal research platform Our global tax workstation Thomsonreuters.com About Thomson Reuters Investor Relations Careers Contact Us Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests. NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.

Other News on Wednesday, 14 November 2012
Obama has faith in Allen's command in Afghanistan: White House |
Obama calls world leaders who hailed his re-election |
Three more killed by Italy floods, hundreds evacuated |
Envoy says Bosnian Serbs seek to undermine peace deal |
Hollande asks French voters to judge him in five years |
RIM sees BB10 devices available soon after launch |
Exclusive: Advanced Micro hires bank to explore options
Verizon to sell HTC's Droid DNA smartphone as holiday flagship |
Intel's McAfee security unit loses global head of sales |
Nokia doubles down on mapping with Here.com |
Microsoft shares fall after departure of key executive |
Apple stops selling customer protection plan at Italian shops |
Charlie Chaplin's bowler and cane to hit auction block |
Former Disney CEO Eisner back in moviemaking with Universal |
Andy Warhol Foundation reaps $17 million from auction sales |
Twilight cast bids farewell at final premiere |
Bahrain opens Arabian Nights-themed national theatre |
France recognizes new Syria opposition |
China party enshrines tighter oversight after Bo Xilai scandal |
No surprises as China congress gives clues to new leadership |
Suspected North Korea missile parts seized en route to Syria in May |
Pakistan agrees to free several Afghan Taliban prisoners |
Car bomb blasts kill at least 12 across Iraq: sources |
The U.S. military pivot to Asia: when bases are not bases |
Japan PM says ready to dissolve parliament for December election |
Analysis: China turns to machines as farmers seek fresh fields |
Exclusive: AMD hires bank to explore options
Sony to raise $1.9 billion through convertible bonds issue |
U.S. Congress urged to probe Chinese cyber-espionage |
Japan's Toshiba restarts shipments at flood-hit Thai plant |
Zynga overhauls upper management as CFO departs |
Microsoft and Google financials could surface at trial |
Cisco sees slower growth in second quarter |
Finnish app for best call-plan to launch in U.S. |
Liza Minnelli to guest star on TV musical drama Smash |
Top Hamas commander killed in Israeli airstrike |
Anti-austerity strikes sweep southern Europe |
U.N.'s nuclear report on Iran may not be all bad news for West |
U.N. worker killed in Sudan, South Sudan disputed region |
Iran aims for baby boom, but are Iranians in the mood? |
U.S. commander says Benghazi attacks linked to al Qaeda in Maghreb |
Invoking the rules, Israel mulls toppling Abbas |
Croatia's deputy PM sentenced to prison for car crash |
Facebook stock up as lock-up expires on largest block of shares |
AT&T sees $1 billion opportunity in company cybersecurity |
Nokia sees no change in relationship with Microsoft |
New game birds play cuckoo in Nokia's nest |
Samsung feud engulfs memorial service for founder |
PayPal eyes double-digit share of Middle East e-commerce |
Facebook campaign wins German boy soccer gravestone |
Cellphones may get smaller Holiday lift: Gartner |
Bradley Cooper mines Philly childhood in Silver Linings |
Actor Channing Tatum dubbed People's sexiest man alive |
Few family films among Hollywood's holiday movies |
After dark years, lights coming back on for Iraqi cinema |
Wakeman reworks rock epic Journey to Centre of Earth |
Greece at new risk of being pushed off euro
Bodies of missing Tenn. mom, Jo Ann Bain, and daughter found
Female Breasts Are Bigger Than Ever
AMD Trinity Accelerated Processing Units Now in Volume Production
The Avengers (2012 film), made the second biggest opening- and single-day gross of all-time
AMD to Start Production of piledriver
Ivy Bridge Quad-Core, Four-Thread Desktop CPUs
Islamists Protest Lady Gaga's Concert in Indonesia
Japan Successfully Broadcasts an 8K Signal Over the Air
ECB boosts loans to 1 trillion Euro to stop credit crunch
Egypt : Mohammed Morsi won with 52 percent
What do you call 100,000 Frenchmen with their hands up
AMD Launches AMD Embedded R-Series APU Platform
Fed Should not Ignore Emerging Market Crisis
Fed casts shadow over India, emerging markets
Why are Chinese tourists so rude? A few insights

USD EUR - 1 year graph		BlogMeter 1.01