Forget Baghdad: Jews and Arabs - The Iraqi Connection
Encyclopedia
Forget Baghdad: Jews and Arabs - The Iraqi Connection is a 2002 documentary film about the Mizrahim
, or Jewish community of Iraq
. It was written and directed by Samir, an Iraqi born in Baghdad in 1955 and living since 1961 in Switzerland
.
The film focuses on five expatriate Iraqi Jews, most living in Israel
: Shimon Ballas, Moshe (Moussa) Houri, Sami Michael
, Samir Naqqash
, and Ella Habiba Shohat.
The film's music is by Rabih Abou-Khalil
. It was produced by Karin Koch and Samir and edited by Nina Schneider and Samir. The directors of photography were Nurith Aviv
and Philippe Bellaiche.
The film was a coproduction between TagTraum Cologne, Gerd Haag, SF DRS, Teleclub, and Dschoint Ventschr Filmproduktion. It is 112 minutes in length.
The DVD, which is distributed by Arab Film Distribution
, comes with a 30-minute "Making of the film" featurette. The DVD has multiple audio tracks and subtitles in English, German, French, Arabic, Hebrew, Italian, and Spanish.
Mizrahi Jews
Mizrahi Jews or Mizrahiyim, , also referred to as Adot HaMizrach are Jews descended from the Jewish communities of the Middle East, North Africa and the Caucasus...
, or Jewish community of Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
. It was written and directed by Samir, an Iraqi born in Baghdad in 1955 and living since 1961 in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
.
The film focuses on five expatriate Iraqi Jews, most living in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
: Shimon Ballas, Moshe (Moussa) Houri, Sami Michael
Sami Michael
Sami Michael is an Israeli author. Since 2001, Michael has been the President of The Association for Civil Rights in Israel .Michael was among the first in Israel to call for the creation of an independent Palestinian state to exist alongside Israel. In his novels Michael writes about the...
, Samir Naqqash
Samir Naqqash
Samir Naqqash was an Iraqi Jewish novelist, short-story writer, and playwright who immigrated to Israel.-Biography:...
, and Ella Habiba Shohat.
The film's music is by Rabih Abou-Khalil
Rabih Abou-Khalil
-Life:Rabih Abou-Khalil grew up in Beirut and moved to Munich, Germany during the civil war in 1978. He lives part-time in Munich and part-time in the South of France with his wife and two children.-Music:...
. It was produced by Karin Koch and Samir and edited by Nina Schneider and Samir. The directors of photography were Nurith Aviv
Nurith Aviv
Nurith Aviv , Tel Aviv, Palestine is a prolific cinematographer, director, writer.Nurith Aviv is Professor at La Fémis , and was, in 1975, the first woman in France to be officially recognized as a Director of Photography by the CNC .-Filmography:-External links:*...
and Philippe Bellaiche.
The film was a coproduction between TagTraum Cologne, Gerd Haag, SF DRS, Teleclub, and Dschoint Ventschr Filmproduktion. It is 112 minutes in length.
The DVD, which is distributed by Arab Film Distribution
Arab Film Distribution
Arab Film Distribution is a distributor of films about the Arab world. The Seattle-based company distributes its films in North America, and was founded in 1990 by the Seattle Arab & Iranian Film Festival, which was in turn created for the 1990 Goodwill Games. In 2005, the company launched a...
, comes with a 30-minute "Making of the film" featurette. The DVD has multiple audio tracks and subtitles in English, German, French, Arabic, Hebrew, Italian, and Spanish.