Spring of Subversion? Independent Arab Filmmaking and its Revolution(s)

在所谓的“阿拉伯之春”前夕和之后，席卷阿拉伯世界的社会和政治地震无疑是艺术异见的催化剂，并在该地区最近的纪录片和前卫电影制作中得到了表达。然而，并不是所有的新发展都可以根据阿拉伯叛乱来解释。自世纪之交以来，地区媒体和电影景观已经开始发生变化。1990年代随着新媒体和数字技术的采用、黎巴嫩内战的结束以及海湾国家媒体和投资政治的改变而开始的所谓数字转向已成为这方面的一些最具决定性的因素。所有这些因素共同导致了商业和非商业领域生产和分配条件的强烈改变。拟议的研究项目旨在提高我们对非虚构阿拉伯电影制作领域的历史和最新发展的了解。它的主要兴趣是评估另类和创新电影制作与周围社会和政治变化之间的关系。它想勾勒出与艺术颠覆概念相关的政治异见的挑战和可能性。更具体地说，它将调查和反思灵感的来源以及电影制作人和艺术家及其作品对关键社会和政治事件的反应，反之亦然。因此，本研究将提出相互作用的问题，即革命及其定义如何以及在多大程度上在视听实践及其接受中具体化。在更大的范围内，考虑到限制性的结构框架条件，即缺乏合格的培训、融资、发行以及直接和间接审查的问题，似乎也有必要研究国家和跨国文化及其机构（如电影基金、电影节和新媒体）之间的关系，并将它们与作品的形式和内容并列。这将有助于阐明过去几年来区域和跨区域经济、社会和政治权力关系的变化。最后的研究应该由四个章节或研究主题组成：1)阿拉伯非小说：边缘化的历史2)数字转向和反叛时代3)身份和跨国主义4)电影颠覆的范围

The social and political earthquakes that have seized the Arab World in the eve and aftermath of the socalled Arab Spring have certainly worked as a catalyst for artistic dissidence and has found an expression in the recent documentary and avantgarde filmmaking of the region. Yet, not all of the new developments can be interpreted in the light of the Arab rebellion. Since the turn of the millennium the regional media and filmscape had started changing already. The socalled digital turn which began during the 1990s with the introduction of the new media and digital technology, the end of the Lebanese Civil war, as well as the changed media and investment politics of and in the Gulf States have become some of the most decisive factors in that respect. All together they have led to strongly amended conditions for production and distribution in the commercial as well as in in the non commercial field. The proposed research project is supposed to enhance our knowledge about the history and the most recent developments in the field on non fictional Arab filmmaking. Its main interest is to assess the relationship between alternative and innovative filmmaking and the surrounding social and political changes. It wants to sketch out the challenges and possibilities of political dissidence in correlation with the notion of artistic subversion. More concretely, it will investigate and reflect on the sources of inspiration and the reactions of filmmakers and artists and their works on and to pivotal social and political events and vice versa. With this, the study will pose the question of interaction, that is, how and to which extent revolution(s) and their definitions crystallize in audio-visual practices and their reception. On a larger scope and in view of the restraining structural framing conditions, namely lack of competent training, problems of financing, distribution as well as direct and indirect censorship it seems also necessary to examine the relationship between national and transnational culture and its institutions, such as film funds, festivals and New Media outlets and to juxtapose them to form and content of the works. This will allow to shed light on the shifts in regional and transregional economic, social and political power relations of the last years. The final study should be compose of four chapters or research topics:1) Arab Non Fiction: A History of Marginalization2) The Digital Turn and the Age of Rebellion3) Identity and Transnationalism4) The Scope of Cinematic Subversions