Category: CULTURE

News about culture and cultural heritage

Alexandria Film Festival for Mediterranean Countries: remembering late directors, honouring young talents

With the background of Alexandria’s charming light September breeze and sea scenery, the Alexandria Film Festival for Mediterranean Countries began in its 32nd edition. The festival, which took place between 21 to 27 September, highlights and celebrates individual and short films from 29 Mediterranean counties. It also honours their directors for their additions to cinema.

With the participation of international celebrities and public figures, the festival launched its competitions for long films as well as individual short films and documentaries. The festival screens around a hundred films from foreign countries, including Spain, France, Russia, the US, and Greece, as well as Arab countries like Lebanon, Palestine, Jordan, Algeria, and Yemen.

The festival also celebrates Bibliotheca Alexandrina for 120 years since its first screening.

Egyptian documentaries Gamila and Ah had strong showings in the festival’s film competition, while Imanwel is fighting for the top prize in the documentary’s competitions. Despite a bloody civil war that has ravaged the country for more than five years, Syria participated with several films this round, showcasing unique talents despite years of suffering. With Faneya w Tatagadad(Perishable and Reviving), Soreyon (Syrians), Iqonet Farah (Happiness Icon), Syrian directors are fiercely competing for first prize in the documentary section.

In the short film competition, 13 films from different regions fight for the first award. This includes the Egyptian film Arzaa (Sustenance’s), the Palestinian films Hala Tare’aa (An Emergency Case) and Gomaa Sawda (Black Friday), as well as Man Ana (Who Am I) from Oman.

The festival also honours prominent Arab directors, including the late director Youssef Sahahin as well as Egyptian director Mohammed Rady, Syrian director Abdel Latif Abdel Hamed, Algerian director Merzaq Melaash and Moroccan director Hakem Bel Abas .

The festival also witnessed the screening of a documentary about the lifetime journey of famous Syrian actor Sured Laham, which was directed by Egypt’s Magy Anwar, who travelled to a war zone in Syria just to shoot the film.

(www.dailynewsegypt.com)

October 10, 2016
International conference on latest evidence concerning the Parthenon Marbles this weekend in Athens

An international conference entltled “The Parthenon Marbles: 200 years since their expropriation by the British Musem” will be held at the Acropolis Museum in Athens on Saturday and Sunday, with the participation of distinguished Greek and foreign archaeologists, antiquities restorers and legal experts. The conference is organised by the “Athenians’ Society” and is taking place under the aegis of Hellenic Republic President Prokopis Pavlopoulos.
It will review the results of the latest research and recent developments concerning the Parthenon Marbles, while it will also bring together for the first time in two decades the representatives of the 14 national committees campaigning for the return of the sculptures to Greece. There will also be elections to renew the operation of International Association for the Reunification of the Parthenon Sculptures (IARPS).
The new evidence to be presented includes material found in the archives of Lord Elgin concerning the way the sculptures were removed from the Parthenon, the architectural elements that are in the British Museum and the problems in their replacement, the Mentor shipwreck and evidence from Ottoman archives in Istanbul. There will also be a discussion on legal aspects of the case.
The results of the conference will be published and made available to academics, while the programme and audiovisual recordings of the speeches will be available through the Athenians’ Society website http://www.syllogostonathinaion.gr/

(www.amna.gr)

October 5, 2016
Ancient Skeleton Uncovered at the Antikythera Shipwreck

Marine archaeologists have found the partial remains of a 2,000-year-old skeleton while conducting an excavation at the Antikythera shipwreck, the famous site that yielded the freakishly-advanced Antikythera Mechanism. Incredibly, the ancient remains could still contain traces of DNA.

The remains, found just three weeks ago, were discovered by researchers from the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI). Working at a depth of 165 feet (50 meters), the archaeologists found the partial human skeleton buried under two feet (0.5 meters) of sand and busted bits of ancient pottery. The excavation yielded a human skull (including a jaw and teeth) legs, ribs, and the long arm bones.

The researchers will now see if they can extract DNA from the 2,000-year-old remains. Should they succeed, it will be the first time that scientists have pulled DNA from such an old underwater sample. The remains are surprisingly well preserved, and experts are encouraged that genetic material still exists within the bones.

The Antikythera shipwreck is a fascinating site, and archaeologists are eager to learn more about the ship, its cargo, and ill-fated crew. Prior to sinking sometime around 65 B.C., this impressive ship transported luxury items—including the oddly computer-like Antikythera Mechanism— from the eastern Mediterranean to other parts of Europe, likely Rome. The ship was large, consisting of multiple levels, and with many people on board. Evidence suggests the ship broke apart after a storm sent it careening into rocks, causing it to sink quickly.

Preliminary analysis of the skeleton suggests the individual was a young man. Should DNA analysis be successful, scientists could learn details such as his hair and eye color, and even his ancestral and geographic origin. Other portions of the skeleton are still embedded in the seafloor, and the archaeologists plan a return visit to collect the rest.

“Archaeologists study the human past through the objects our ancestors created,” noted Brendan Foley, a marine archaeologist with WHOI, in a statement “With the Antikythera Shipwreck, we can now connect directly with this person who sailed and died aboard the Antikythera ship.”

It’s exceptionally rare to find such ancient physical remains underwater. The Antikythera wreck was discovered in 1900 by sponge divers, and all visible artifacts were soon collected. Archaeologists suspect that much of the ship’s cargo still remains buried under the sediment. Recent excavations at the site have produced various artifacts, including large anchors, and a “war dolphin”—a teardrop-shaped lead weight that was used by the ancient Greeks as a defensive weapon to smash hostile ships.

(gizmodo.com)

October 5, 2016
Egyptian-American Rami Malek Wins Emmy for ‘Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series’

Egyptian-American Rami Malek surprised many pundits on Sunday night, winning the ‘Oustanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series’ Emmy for his portrayal of Elliot Anderson in Mr. Robot.

“I am honored to be recognized with such a distinguished and accomplished group of actors,” said Malek as he was accepting his Emmy at the 68th annual Primetime Emmy Awards, hosted by Jimmy Kimmel.

“I’m honored to work with a pure visionary in Sam Esmail, I wouldn’t be here without you, to go to work with an absurdly gifted cast, and crew, and writers,” continued Malek about his first ever Emmy win, referring to the show’s producer who is also an Egyptian-American.

“I play a young man who is, I think like so many of us, profoundly alienated. And the unfortunate thing is I’m not sure how many of us would like to hang out with a guy like Elliot. But I want to honor the Elliot’s because there’s a little bit of Elliot in all of us, isn’t there?”

Malek had been competing for the Emmy alongside a number of other actors including Kyle Chandler of Bloodline, Bob Odenkirk of Better Call Saul, Matthew Rhys of The Americans, and Kevin Spacey of House of Cards.

The young Egyptian-American actor previously starred in Night at the Museum, 24, and the Pacific. In Mr. Robot, Malek plays a security engineer and vigilante hacker with social anxiety disorder.

Mr. Robot was written, directed and produced by 39-year-old Egyptian-American Sam Esmail. Last year, the show won a Golden Globe for Best Drama Series.

(egyptianstreets.com)

October 5, 2016