Avi Mograbi: Z32

I have written several times about the new film of Avi Mograbi, and about this very important documentary filmmaker. I do it with pleasure again by quoting the review of renowned critique Jacques Mandelbaum, just published in connection with the theatrical release of the film in France. The quotes are from the beginning and the end of the text that can be read on the site of le monde:

”Voici maintenant vingt ans qu’Avi Mograbi bricole dans son coin de terre promise des films bizarres et inclassables. Ils tiennent à la fois du documentaire, de la fiction, du journal intime, de la farce brechtienne. Voici vingt ans que cet Israélien moyen, violemment opposé à la politique de son pays, s’estime personnellement comptable de l’impasse douloureuse dans laquelle l’Etat dont il est le citoyen a contribué à enfermer la région. Contre cela, il invente des dispositifs aussi subtils qu’extravagants, tient la chronique de sa vie domestique, met le feu aux check-points, mouline l’air de ses imprécations. En un mot, il boxe, avec sa caméra pour arme, jetant à chaque fois son corps de clown triste poids lourd dans un ring régulièrement déserté par l’adversaire…”

” …On l’aura compris, les questions cinématographiques que pose Z 32 sont des questions politiques. Elles évoquent notre manière de nous comporter devant le mal, celui que l’on commet comme celui que l’on subit, et la difficulté d’accéder au pardon. Autant dire que l’humanisme brûlant de ce film porte un des plus forts témoignages jamais filmés sur la nature du conflit israélo-palestinien.”

http://www.lemonde.fr/archives/article/2009/02/17/z-32-sur-le-drame-israelo-palestinien-un-documentaire-authentique-avec-trucages-et-numeros-musicaux_1156571_0.html

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Tue Steen Müller
Tue Steen Müller

Müller, Tue Steen
Documentary Consultant and Critic, DENMARK

Worked with documentary films for more than 20 years at the Danish Film Board, as press officer, festival representative and film consultant/commissioner. Co-founder of Balticum Film and TV Festival, Filmkontakt Nord, Documentary of the EU and EDN (European Documentary Network).
Awards: 2004 the Danish Roos Prize for his contribution to the Danish and European documentary culture. 2006 an award for promoting Portuguese documentaries. 2014 he received the EDN Award “for an outstanding contribution to the development of the European documentary culture”. 2016 The Cross of the Knight of the Order for Merits to Lithuania. 2019 a Big Stamp at the 15th edition of ZagrebDox. 2021 receipt of the highest state decoration, Order of the Three Stars, Fourth Class, for the significant contribution to the development and promotion of Latvian documentary cinema outside Latvia. In 2022 he received an honorary award at DocsBarcelona’s 25th edition having served as organizer and programmer since the start of the festival.
From 1996 until 2005 he was the first director of EDN (European Documentary Network). From 2006 a freelance consultant and teacher in workshops like Ex Oriente, DocsBarcelona, Archidoc, Documentary Campus, Storydoc, Baltic Sea Forum, Black Sea DocStories, Caucadoc, CinéDOC Tbilisi, Docudays Kiev, Dealing With the Past Sarajevo FF as well as programme consultant for the festivals Magnificent7 in Belgrade, DOCSBarcelona, Verzio Budapest, Message2Man in St. Petersburg and DOKLeipzig. Teaches at the Zelig Documentary School in Bolzano Italy.

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