This series celebrates Mohamad Malas, a Syrian filmmaker whose work has garnered international recognition. Born in 1945 in Quneitra in the Golan Heights, Malas is among the first auteur filmmakers in Syrian cinema. Before taking up filmmaking, he worked as a school teacher between 1965 and 1968. He then moved to Moscow to study filmmaking at the Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography (VGIK). During his time at VGIK, he directed several short films. After his return to Syria, Malas started working for Syrian Television. There he produced several short films, including Quneitra 74 and al-Zhakira (The Memory). Along with Omar Amiralay, he co-founded the Damascus Cinema Club. Between 1980 and 1981, Malas shot the documentary, al-Manam (The Dream), about Palestinians living in refugee camps in Lebanon, during the civil war.
This series includes two of his most compelling short documentaries as well as a new documentary about the filmmaker by scholar and director, Nezar Andary.
Quneitra 74, 1974
Mohamad Malas (Syria)
The Dream, 1987
Mohamad Malas (Syria)
Unlocking Doors of Cinema, 2019
Nezar Andary (UAE, Lebanon, Syria)
Unlocking Doors of Cinema is a feature documentary that explores fifty years of artistic contributions by the daring Syrian auteur Mohamad Malas. Malas, an exile from his home town of Quneitra, provokes audiences to contemplate loss, memory, and home. From the 1967 war and Palestinian camps in Beirut, to the songs of Aleppo and the political tragedies of Syria, Malas exemplifies what it means to be an auteur and public intellectual. Unlocking Doors of Cinema takes audiences on a unique cinematic journey, where creative cinematography becomes a visual conversation with the auteur's five decades of work.
About the Filmmaker
Nezar Andary grew up all over the Arab world after leaving Lebanon during the Civil War. He received his Bachelor's from Columbia University, and his PhD from UCLA. An Associate Professor at Zayed University, Andary has produced over 10 documentary shorts in four years for Arab Film Studio that have screened in over 50 festivals.
Andary is the artistic director of the Al Sidr Environmental Film Festival, the first of its kind in the Arab World. He is the co-editor of a book series, Focus on Arab Cinema for Palgrave MacMillan, and he has recently published a book entitled Cinema of Muhammad Malas: Visions of a Syrian Auteur. Andary's first feature documentary entitled Unlocking Doors of Cinema pays respect to a well-known film auteur and his fundamental passion for cinema.
Enjoying a fusion of all genres, he introduced the concept of documentary theatre to Abu Dhabi with the theater production Memories of Childhood.
- Year2019
- Runtime61 minutes
- LanguageArabic
- CountryUAE, Lebanon, Syria
- DirectorNezar Andary
- ProducerHana Makki
- CastMohammad Malas
This series celebrates Mohamad Malas, a Syrian filmmaker whose work has garnered international recognition. Born in 1945 in Quneitra in the Golan Heights, Malas is among the first auteur filmmakers in Syrian cinema. Before taking up filmmaking, he worked as a school teacher between 1965 and 1968. He then moved to Moscow to study filmmaking at the Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography (VGIK). During his time at VGIK, he directed several short films. After his return to Syria, Malas started working for Syrian Television. There he produced several short films, including Quneitra 74 and al-Zhakira (The Memory). Along with Omar Amiralay, he co-founded the Damascus Cinema Club. Between 1980 and 1981, Malas shot the documentary, al-Manam (The Dream), about Palestinians living in refugee camps in Lebanon, during the civil war.
This series includes two of his most compelling short documentaries as well as a new documentary about the filmmaker by scholar and director, Nezar Andary.
Quneitra 74, 1974
Mohamad Malas (Syria)
The Dream, 1987
Mohamad Malas (Syria)
Unlocking Doors of Cinema, 2019
Nezar Andary (UAE, Lebanon, Syria)
Unlocking Doors of Cinema is a feature documentary that explores fifty years of artistic contributions by the daring Syrian auteur Mohamad Malas. Malas, an exile from his home town of Quneitra, provokes audiences to contemplate loss, memory, and home. From the 1967 war and Palestinian camps in Beirut, to the songs of Aleppo and the political tragedies of Syria, Malas exemplifies what it means to be an auteur and public intellectual. Unlocking Doors of Cinema takes audiences on a unique cinematic journey, where creative cinematography becomes a visual conversation with the auteur's five decades of work.
About the Filmmaker
Nezar Andary grew up all over the Arab world after leaving Lebanon during the Civil War. He received his Bachelor's from Columbia University, and his PhD from UCLA. An Associate Professor at Zayed University, Andary has produced over 10 documentary shorts in four years for Arab Film Studio that have screened in over 50 festivals.
Andary is the artistic director of the Al Sidr Environmental Film Festival, the first of its kind in the Arab World. He is the co-editor of a book series, Focus on Arab Cinema for Palgrave MacMillan, and he has recently published a book entitled Cinema of Muhammad Malas: Visions of a Syrian Auteur. Andary's first feature documentary entitled Unlocking Doors of Cinema pays respect to a well-known film auteur and his fundamental passion for cinema.
Enjoying a fusion of all genres, he introduced the concept of documentary theatre to Abu Dhabi with the theater production Memories of Childhood.
- Year2019
- Runtime61 minutes
- LanguageArabic
- CountryUAE, Lebanon, Syria
- DirectorNezar Andary
- ProducerHana Makki
- CastMohammad Malas