Yamina Benguigui
Encyclopedia
Yamina Benguigui is a French
-Algeria
n film director
. She is known for her films on gender
issues in the North Africa
n immigrant community in France.
and immigrated to France from Algeria in the early 1950s. She never discovered why her parents decided to leave Algeria, saying the subject was considered taboo. Born in Lille
, Benguigui was the eldest daughter of six children and spent her childhood in northern France. Describing herself as a quiet child who grew up in the Islam
ic tradition, Benguigui was only 13 years old when she first decided to become a filmmaker.
Her father was a political leader in the Algerian National Movement
, and was jailed in France for three years as a political prisoner
(she has also stated that he was jailed on two separate occasions, and that her whole family was once under house arrest
). Because he did not support her in her chosen profession, Benguigui broke off contact with him early on, only to reconnect with him in late 2001. After she left the family her mother divorced her father as well. Yamina Benguigui married a Jewish pied-noir
and has two daughters.
. Later Benguigui founded "Bandit Productions" with director Rachid Bouchareb
. In 1994 her documentary Femmes d'Islam was broadcast on France 2
, but subsequently she decided that she would prefer to examine the immigrant experience in France rather than life in Algeria.
Her next documentary, Mémoires d'immigrés, l'héritage maghrébin, cost 50 million francs
and was the result of 350 interviews conducted with immigrants across France. After a two-year period of preparation and another nine months of editing it was first shown in May 1997 on Canal+
. Receiving positive reviews from critics, it was rebroadcast the following month and brought to theaters the following January.
As of February 2008 Benguigui was working on a film entitled Le paradis, c'est complet!, starring Isabelle Adjani
.
In the March 2008 French municipal elections
Benguigui was elected in the XXe arrondissement
to the Conseil de Paris
, where she will concern herself with human rights
and the fight against discrimination. She is associated with the Socialist Party
.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
-Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
n film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
. She is known for her films on gender
Gender
Gender is a range of characteristics used to distinguish between males and females, particularly in the cases of men and women and the masculine and feminine attributes assigned to them. Depending on the context, the discriminating characteristics vary from sex to social role to gender identity...
issues in the North Africa
North Africa
North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...
n immigrant community in France.
Life
Benguigui's parents were KabyleKabyle people
The Kabyle people are the largest homogeneous Algerian ethno-cultural and linguistical community and the largest nation in North Africa to be considered exclusively Berber. Their traditional homeland is Kabylie in the north of Algeria, one hundred miles east of Algiers...
and immigrated to France from Algeria in the early 1950s. She never discovered why her parents decided to leave Algeria, saying the subject was considered taboo. Born in Lille
Lille
Lille is a city in northern France . It is the principal city of the Lille Métropole, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the country behind those of Paris, Lyon and Marseille. Lille is situated on the Deûle River, near France's border with Belgium...
, Benguigui was the eldest daughter of six children and spent her childhood in northern France. Describing herself as a quiet child who grew up in the Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
ic tradition, Benguigui was only 13 years old when she first decided to become a filmmaker.
Her father was a political leader in the Algerian National Movement
Algerian National Movement
The Algerian National Movement was an organization founded to counteract the efforts of the Front de Libération Nationale . It was supported and, some say, partly financed by the French who used it to validate the claim that the FLN was not the sole representative of Algerian desires.It was...
, and was jailed in France for three years as a political prisoner
Political prisoner
According to the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, a political prisoner is ‘someone who is in prison because they have opposed or criticized the government of their own country’....
(she has also stated that he was jailed on two separate occasions, and that her whole family was once under house arrest
House arrest
In justice and law, house arrest is a measure by which a person is confined by the authorities to his or her residence. Travel is usually restricted, if allowed at all...
). Because he did not support her in her chosen profession, Benguigui broke off contact with him early on, only to reconnect with him in late 2001. After she left the family her mother divorced her father as well. Yamina Benguigui married a Jewish pied-noir
Pied-noir
Pied-Noir , plural Pieds-Noirs, pronounced , is a term referring to French citizens of various origins who lived in French Algeria before independence....
and has two daughters.
Career
Earning her baccalaureate and going on to study at film school, Benguigui then collaborated with French director Jean-Daniel PolletJean-Daniel Pollet
Jean-Daniel Pollet is a French film director and screenwriter who was most active in the 1960s and 1970s. He was associated with two approaches to filmmaking: comedies which blended burlesque and melancholic elements, and poetic films based on texts by writers such as the French poet Francis...
. Later Benguigui founded "Bandit Productions" with director Rachid Bouchareb
Rachid Bouchareb
Rachid Bouchareb is a French film director of Algerian descent.From 1977 to 1983, he worked as an assistant director for France’s state television production company, Société française de production . Subsequetly, he worked for broadcasters TF1 and Antenne 2...
. In 1994 her documentary Femmes d'Islam was broadcast on France 2
France 2
France 2 is a French public national television channel. It is part of the state-owned France Télévisions group, along with France 3, France 4, France 5 and France Ô...
, but subsequently she decided that she would prefer to examine the immigrant experience in France rather than life in Algeria.
Her next documentary, Mémoires d'immigrés, l'héritage maghrébin, cost 50 million francs
French franc
The franc was a currency of France. Along with the Spanish peseta, it was also a de facto currency used in Andorra . Between 1360 and 1641, it was the name of coins worth 1 livre tournois and it remained in common parlance as a term for this amount of money...
and was the result of 350 interviews conducted with immigrants across France. After a two-year period of preparation and another nine months of editing it was first shown in May 1997 on Canal+
Canal+
Canal+ is a French premium pay television channel launched in 1984. It is 80% owned by the Canal+ Group, which in turn is owned by Vivendi SA. The channel broadcasts several kinds of programming, mostly encrypted...
. Receiving positive reviews from critics, it was rebroadcast the following month and brought to theaters the following January.
As of February 2008 Benguigui was working on a film entitled Le paradis, c'est complet!, starring Isabelle Adjani
Isabelle Adjani
Isabelle Yasmine Adjani is a French film actress and singer. Adjani has appeared in 30 films since 1970. She holds the record for most César Awards for Best Actress with five, for Possession , One Deadly Summer , Camille Claudel , Queen Margot and Skirt Day...
.
In the March 2008 French municipal elections
French municipal elections, 2008
The French municipal elections of 2008 were held on 9 March in that year to elect the municipal councils of France's 36,782 communes...
Benguigui was elected in the XXe arrondissement
XXe arrondissement
The 20th arrondissement, also known as arrondissement de Ménilmontant, located on the Right Bank, is one of the 20 arrondissements of Paris, France. It contains the cosmopolitan districts of Ménilmontant and Belleville which have welcomed many successive waves of immigration since the middle of the...
to the Conseil de Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, where she will concern herself with human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
and the fight against discrimination. She is associated with the Socialist Party
Socialist Party (France)
The Socialist Party is a social-democratic political party in France and the largest party of the French centre-left. It is one of the two major contemporary political parties in France, along with the center-right Union for a Popular Movement...
.
Filmography
- 1994: Femmes d'Islam
- 1997: Mémoires d'immigrés, l'héritage maghrébin (Immigrant Memories) - Director
- 2001: Pimprenelle, in Pas d'histoires! (Don't Make Trouble!) - Director and writer
- 2001: Inch'Allah DimancheInch'Allah DimancheInch'Allah Dimanche is a 2001 French/Algerian movie by Yamina Benguigui about the life of an Algerian immigrant woman in France. The film won a variety of international awards, including the 2001 International Critics' Award at the Toronto International Film Festival...
(Inch'Allah Sunday) - Director and writer - 2003: Aïcha, Mohamed, Chaïb… Engagés pour la France)
- 2004: Le Plafond de verre (The Glass Ceiling) - Director and writer
- 2006: Les Défricheurs - Director
- 2007: Changer de regard - Portrait n° 5 - Director
Mémoires d'immigrés, l'héritage maghrébin
- Festival International de Programmes Audiovisuels, Michel Mitrani prize
- San Francisco International Film FestivalSan Francisco International Film FestivalSan Francisco International Film Festival is the oldest continuously running film festival in the Americas. Organized by the San Francisco Film Society, the International is held each spring for two weeks, presenting an average of 150 films from over 50 countries...
, Golden Gate Award - 7 d'Or Night, Best Documentary (1997)
Inch'Allah Dimanche
- Amiens International Film FestivalAmiens International Film FestivalThe Amiens International Film Festival is an annual special-interest film festival focusing on the cinemas of Europe, Africa and Latin America. The festival has been held annually in Amiens, France, since 1980....
, OCIC Award and Prize of the City of Amiens (2001) - Bordeaux International Festival of Women in Cinema, Audience Award and Golden Wave (2001)
- Cairo International Film FestivalCairo International Film FestivalThe Cairo International Film Festival is an annual film festival held in Cairo, Egypt. It was established in 1976 and was the first international film festival held in the Arab world...
, Golden Pyramid (2001) - International Film Festival of MarrakechInternational Film Festival of MarrakechThe International Film Festival of Marrakech is an international film festival held annually in Marrakech, Morocco.-Overview:Since its inaugural year in 2000, the FIFM has been one of the biggest events devoted to Moroccan cinema...
, Golden Star (2001) - Toronto International Film FestivalToronto International Film FestivalThe Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
, International Critics' Award (FIPRESCIFIPRESCIThe International Federation of Film Critics is an association of national organizations of professional film critics and film journalists from around the world for "the promotion and development of film culture and for the safeguarding of professional interests." It was founded in June 1930 in...
) (2001)