We no longer need to introduce Elia Suleiman, standard bearer for three decades of Palestinian cinema, who this year chaired the Tetouan Mediterranean Cinema Festival. Since his first feature film, “Chronicles of a Disappearance” (1996), the director has carved out a special place for himself in the global cinematographic landscape, with films with an intimate tone, oscillating deliciously between melancholy and burlesque, and telling, often in the first person, the Palestinian drama, the heartbreak, the exile and a form of resilience.
In this exchange with Le360the author of “Divine Intervention”, Jury Prize at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival, confides his attachment to Morocco and deplores the censorship which has hit Palestinian filmmakers around the world since October 7, 2023.
Le360: As president of the jury of the Tetouan Mediterranean Cinema Festival, you were able to meet an audience who loves Palestine and Palestinian cinema. What is your feeling?
Elia Suleiman: One of the reasons I come here to Morocco is both cultural and political. I really like this country and I visit it often. In most cases, it is as part of cultural activities to which I am invited, and more rarely for tourism. I think everyone knows the bond between Moroccans and Palestinians. And I think that’s an essential factor.
In your latest film, “It Must Be Heaven,” and in many others, you use farce and a certain irony. Why do you use this tone in your cinematic language?
My latest film is very different from the previous ones. He discusses the subject of globalization, from a Palestinian perspective. This is particularly why it was filmed in several locations around the world.
What is the place of Palestinian cinema today in the world?
We will see how this all develops. But what is certain is that since October 7, things have changed and censorship has fallen on Palestinian directors.
By Achraf El Hassani And Said Kadri
05/08/2024 at 9:29 a.m.
