Interview: Arab films promising, steps away from world top level: Hollywood filmmaker

by Mahmoud Fouly

CAIRO, Nov. 29 (Xinhua) -- The Arab cinema is promising but it needs hark work and self-development to reach a better world status, said filmmaker Hany Abu-Assad, director of 2017 Hollywood movie "The Mountain Between Us," in an interview with Xinhua in Cairo.

The Golden Globe award winning, Palestinian-born director has been chosen as member of the jury panel of the ongoing 39th Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF) and his movie starring Kate Winslet and Idris Elba has been selected as the festival's opening film.

"The CIFF is very important internationally and locally," said Abu-Assad, lamenting that a technical problem on the part of the festival made him withdraw his movie from the first few minutes of its display in the opening night, amid apologies from CIFF officials.

"There was a technical problem when my film was screened in the opening night, which I believe is a minor issue. The next day, those in charge of the festival corrected the issue and I was happy with that. So, it's all good now and everyone is happy," said the Arab filmmaker.

He continued that the Arab cinema should reach to the Arab audience first before it reaches to the world, noting that Arabs generally like to watch entertainment movies rather than those with intellectual, social or cultural effects.

"But I am very optimistic, as there are really new thoughtful self-connected Arab moviemakers who can make constructive films that reach broad audience, which is something promising," he told Xinhua.

Abu Assad, famous for his "Paradise Now," added that there are creative Egyptian filmmakers who could take the Egyptian cinema to a higher level, expressing admiration of the works of Amr Salama who directed "Sheikh Jackson" and Mohamed Diab who is known for his directorial debut "Cairo 678."

With regards to "The Mountain Between Us," where Winslet and Elba play two strangers who survive a plane crash that unfortunately happens atop a mountain, Abu-Assad said the choice of the stars was done after a lot of discussions and meetings with the production company and that he recommended Winslet and Elba after he saw them side by side at a ceremony of the British Academy Film Awards.

"The film is a unique experience for me, because it is so difficult for any filmmaker, not only an Arab, to convince a large studio that he is a good director who can run large crews, large budgets and movie stars," he told Xinhua, adding "it requires long experience as a director in the cinema industry, so I feel it is an accomplishment in my career."

He noted that the plane crash was a very difficult scene as it was done in one continuous shot, "but it was very well done and I am very happy with it. I also like the shot after the crash when the man got out of the plane and first saw the surroundings."

Abu-Assad pointed out that his name started to ring a bell in Hollywood not only because of "Paradise Now" but also "Omar" and even those less popular movies like "The Idol."

"A Hollywood studio reviews all the filmmaker's past films for assessment to make sure their work with him will turn out good. They decide to choose the filmmaker after a thorough study, not by judging one or two films," he told Xinhua.

The renowned Arab director explained that dealing with actors like Winslet and Elba was difficult in the beginning, because superstars have their own privacies and special ways of treatment, "but I could easily overcome that and brake the ice so we could communicate on an equal footing, and our cooperation was really so fruitful."

As for the Chinese cinema, Abu-Assad said it has greatly developed over the past four decades to secure a better place in the world cinema industry, adding that some Chinese directors managed to raise the Chinese cinema to an international level.

"Filmmakers play a very important role in featuring their world to the other world, and some Chinese directors even influenced us as non-Chinese filmmakers. One of those creative Chinese filmmakers is Zhang Yimou of the 'Rise of the Red Lantern,'" the Arab, Hollywood director told Xinhua. Enditem