As never before, Arab filmmakers suffer from an extensive set of challenges that may affect, among other things, their safety and security as individuals. They are risking everything they own, and sometimes their lives, to produce films that only a few people will eventually have the opportunity to watch! They work within complex and dangerous social, political, economic, financial, religious, cultural, and regulatory contexts threatening their safety at every production stage.

With no exception, Arab countries have a long history of strict censorship over creative making. Current indicators only confirm the brutality of such restrictions in every production stage, beginning from the script and beyond distribution, sometimes resulting in incarceration and death threats: regressive enforcement of silencing any voice that remotely disassociates with the narratives of the ruling regimes. Those who try to produce a film that deals with a social, political, or economic issue expose themselves to the oppressive apparatus of the official and non-official ruling systems. The state, which in principle is supposed to “monopoly the violence,” sometimes assigns it to groups of thugs and mercenaries who carry out the dirty work on its behalf. It is a practice far too familiar in our part of the world, and those who manage to escape physical imprisonment or murder have their imagination imprisoned and ideas murdered.
And murderers of ideas are just murderers!

To keep a tight grip on censorship, Arab governments need support and allies: enter religious institutions, colliding with the state with the aim of serving mutually convenient narratives. When the state’s authority weakens or risks fragmentation, it calls on religious institutions to silence those unsuitable narratives. In both cases, it is a vicious conspiracy, and in both cases, Arab artists have to pay the price for their creativity, and society as a whole loses narratives that could have accomplished some change. Our governments exert themselves to nurture a distaste for creativity that doesn’t serve its record. As for religious figures, they manifest aversion to whatever contradicts the stagnating religious script.
The message is clear: Stay put and die in silence.

Apart from censorship, a leading player in stifling the financial income of artists, Arab filmmakers, as well as the entire society, are victims of the deteriorating economies in most of the area. Financing Arab films has never been a joyride, but it is now more challenging than ever. With the economic collapse and the absence of cultural policies that support creative productions, filmmakers face substantial challenges in securing the necessary funds to produce their films. If their projects were their only source of income, they would inevitably find themselves on the spectrum of poverty. They must, therefore, either rely on the funding of some Arab donors (however few), succumb to governmental funds that impose their narratives, or resort to foreign support that also have specific agendas.

Arab governments must set cultural policies that encourage and support film production in all its stages, from writing to filming and distribution. Some countries have established support funds (notably with the rise of the Pan-Arab nation); however, those have always been subordinate to the ruling regimes’ interests and narratives. Economic collapse, funds serving the interests of states, massive lack of funding sources, and oppressive regimes’ impoverishment policies imposed by the superpowers that control the world’s wealth are all factors inflicting economic violence against Arab societies. When a filmmaker succeeds in escaping the brutality of censorship, it’s severe economic violence that they would have to face.

Who has the money owns the land and the people on it: that is our world. In that sense, every film outside this system is a “heroic” act of struggle where filmmakers face unimaginable threats.
Lack of funding puts filmmakers at risk of economic violence and makes them vulnerable to all sorts of risks related to their work field. The meager budgets allocated for cinema production do not allow filmmakers to secure protection requirements and personal safety tools at the filming locations. It also creates challenges in securing appropriate food and decent accommodation. A low budget also drives crews to work long hours, depriving them of the necessary sleep and sufficient rest time. All that seriously affects the lives of the film workers and may sometimes lead to their death.
Sleep deprivation, for instance, causes poor concentration and leads to fatal incidents, and there are many examples of artists who lost their lives as a result. Amid such circumstances, filmmakers in the Arab region who continue to work in complex and dangerous security conditions must be acknowledged as undaunted heroes.

Political stability in our part of the world is almost non-existent, and armed conflicts keep spreading. Let’s picture a film shooting in Libya, Syria, or Iraq (to name a few). Filmmakers there face state censorship and repression and must deal with a volatile environment that can escalate to become hostile at any time. They put their lives on the line and strive with their big hearts to make films that could create some hope.

That is only the tip of the iceberg regarding the constant threats filmmakers face in the Arab region. It is only a hint of the pain that drives many filmmakers to either risk their lives, abandon their passion, or emigrate in search of an industry that shelters them and fulfills their dreams! Only the tip of the iceberg of the collapse tearing down our societies from the Atlantic to the Gulf!

Amidst that complex reality, it is our duty as one of the Arab cultural institutions working to support creativity, to relentlessly confront these challenges and limit their impact on Arab filmmakers.
We have therefore set among our priorities for this year two main projects:
The production of the “Red Guide”, a safety and security guide that serves as a reference for filmmakers looking to protect themselves and mitigate threats they may face during production. It is a comprehensive guide covering the most pressing issues regarding film industry members’ safety.
In addition to the “Red Guide”, we are developing a study for “The Dignity Fund Initiative”, which seeks to secure funding for filmmakers, providing them with protection from economic violence, guaranteeing their independence of thought, and limiting talents’ emigration. So far, we have completed a detailed study that defines the rationale of the fund’s establishment, the management method, and the beneficiaries. In the next phase, we seek to secure the necessary funds and launch the initiative.

Needless to say, the rest of our commitments to Arab filmmakers will not be affected; and as we move forward with our new program and the launching of the “Red Guide” and the “Dignity Fund Initiative” this year, we look forward to hearing your valuable suggestions.

May your bravery be glorified and your voice always be heard.