Randa Chahal
Encyclopedia
Randa Chahal Sabbag also written Sabbagh, (born 11 December 1953, in Tripoli
, Lebanon
; died 25 August 2008 in Paris
, France
), was a Lebanese
film director, producer and screen-writer born to an Iraqi
mother and Lebanese
father.
She died from cancer at the age of 54.
(See below for individual film awards and nominations)
Les Infidèles, a 1997 drama, is about the relationship between a French diplomat and a former Islamist who agrees to turn over the names of his colleagues if the French government will release an imprisoned friend.
Civilisées (A Civilized People) released in 1999, is a black comedy about the Lebanese Civil War
, which killed at least 100,000 people. Chahal deployed a ‘vaudevillian cast’ including foreign servants and philanthropists, visiting expatriates, militiamen and criminals - in a profane and disunified story mixing elements of absurdist plays. Some 40 minutes of the film was censored for its ‘obscenity’ and ‘uncomplimentary representation of Lebanon during this particularly unsavory spell of its history’. It was subsequently screened only once, at the Beirut International Film Festival.
Chahal soared to fame in 2003 with The Kite, which received the Silver Lion
at the 2003 Venice Film Festival
and won several prestigious prizes and international acclaim; the Grand Special Jury Prize, the Cinema for Peace Award and the Laterna Magica Prize. Set in a low-key South Lebanese
village, the film is about love, life, death and the absurdity of the Israeli occupation, seen from the perspective of a Druze
family separated following the division of their village into two with one half annexed to Israel
. The story evolves around an arranged marriage between Lamia, a 16-year-old Lebanese Druze
girl, (played by Flavia Bechara) and her Israeli Druze
cousin (played by Maher Bsaibes). The drama unfolds under the vigilant yet impotent Israeli-Lebanese border guards; one of whom is played by renowned Lebanese composer, actor and playwright Ziad Rahbani
. The Kite is used ‘as a metaphor for love and for life at the border’, it explores, with depth and sometimes humor, 'the meaning of brides, of the hope they represent for divided families and, sometimes, for divided nations'.
In 2005, Chahal started a new project with the distinguished Lebanese-American Hollywood film-producer Elie Samaha. With the working title Too Bad for Them, the film is expected to combine comedy, music, dancing as well as politics, and North-South socio-economic disparities. However, the film was unreleased at the time of Chahal's death.
Tripoli, Lebanon
Tripoli is the largest city in northern Lebanon and the second-largest city in Lebanon. Situated 85 km north of the capital Beirut, Tripoli is the capital of the North Governorate and the Tripoli District. Geographically located on the east of the Mediterranean, the city's history dates back...
, Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
; died 25 August 2008 in 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...
, France
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...
), was a Lebanese
Lebanese people
The Lebanese people are a nation and ethnic group of Levantine people originating in what is today the country of Lebanon, including those who had inhabited Mount Lebanon prior to the creation of the modern Lebanese state....
film director, producer and screen-writer born to an Iraqi
Iraqi people
The Iraqi people or Mesopotamian people are natives or inhabitants of the country of Iraq, known since antiquity as Mesopotamia , with a large diaspora throughout the Arab World, Europe, the Americas, and...
mother and Lebanese
Lebanese people
The Lebanese people are a nation and ethnic group of Levantine people originating in what is today the country of Lebanon, including those who had inhabited Mount Lebanon prior to the creation of the modern Lebanese state....
father.
She died from cancer at the age of 54.
Awards
- National Order of the CedarNational Order of the CedarThe National Order of the Cedar is a prestigious civilian and military award and Medal of the Lebanese Government. This Order is the highest decoration in Lebanon and is made up of five Grades :* Grand Cordon...
(Officer), national decoration, LebanonLebanonLebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
, 2003 - Nestor AlmendrosNéstor AlmendrosNéstor Almendros, ASC was an Oscar winning Spanish cinematographer. One of the highest appraised contemporary cinematographers, "Almendros was an artist of deep integrity, who believed the most beautiful light was natural light...he will always be remembered as a cinematographer of absolute...
Prize, New YorkNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, 2000
(See below for individual film awards and nominations)
Themes
Chahal began her career with documentary films but shifted to feature films by the 1990s, though she retained ‘a documentary-maker's nose for contentious subject matter’. She is reported to have said,“You discover in my films a common denominator. You notice that the camera only moves from right to left exactly like Arabic writing.”Les Infidèles, a 1997 drama, is about the relationship between a French diplomat and a former Islamist who agrees to turn over the names of his colleagues if the French government will release an imprisoned friend.
Civilisées (A Civilized People) released in 1999, is a black comedy about the Lebanese Civil War
Lebanese Civil War
The Lebanese Civil War was a multifaceted civil war in Lebanon. The war lasted from 1975 to 1990 and resulted in an estimated 150,000 to 230,000 civilian fatalities. Another one million people were wounded, and today approximately 350,000 people remain displaced. There was also a mass exodus of...
, which killed at least 100,000 people. Chahal deployed a ‘vaudevillian cast’ including foreign servants and philanthropists, visiting expatriates, militiamen and criminals - in a profane and disunified story mixing elements of absurdist plays. Some 40 minutes of the film was censored for its ‘obscenity’ and ‘uncomplimentary representation of Lebanon during this particularly unsavory spell of its history’. It was subsequently screened only once, at the Beirut International Film Festival.
Chahal soared to fame in 2003 with The Kite, which received the Silver Lion
Silver Lion
The Leone d’Argento refers to a number of awards presented at the Venice Film Festival. The Silver Lion is awarded irregularly and have gone through several changes of purpose. Until 1995, Silver Lions were infrequently awarded to a number of films as second prize for those nominated for the...
at the 2003 Venice Film Festival
Venice Film Festival
The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the...
and won several prestigious prizes and international acclaim; the Grand Special Jury Prize, the Cinema for Peace Award and the Laterna Magica Prize. Set in a low-key South Lebanese
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
village, the film is about love, life, death and the absurdity of the Israeli occupation, seen from the perspective of a Druze
Druze
The Druze are an esoteric, monotheistic religious community, found primarily in Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Jordan, which emerged during the 11th century from Ismailism. The Druze have an eclectic set of beliefs that incorporate several elements from Abrahamic religions, Gnosticism, Neoplatonism...
family separated following the division of their village into two with one half annexed to Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. The story evolves around an arranged marriage between Lamia, a 16-year-old Lebanese Druze
Druze
The Druze are an esoteric, monotheistic religious community, found primarily in Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Jordan, which emerged during the 11th century from Ismailism. The Druze have an eclectic set of beliefs that incorporate several elements from Abrahamic religions, Gnosticism, Neoplatonism...
girl, (played by Flavia Bechara) and her Israeli Druze
Druze
The Druze are an esoteric, monotheistic religious community, found primarily in Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Jordan, which emerged during the 11th century from Ismailism. The Druze have an eclectic set of beliefs that incorporate several elements from Abrahamic religions, Gnosticism, Neoplatonism...
cousin (played by Maher Bsaibes). The drama unfolds under the vigilant yet impotent Israeli-Lebanese border guards; one of whom is played by renowned Lebanese composer, actor and playwright Ziad Rahbani
Ziad Rahbani
Ziad Rahbani is a Lebanese composer, pianist, performer, playwright, and political commentator. His compositions are well-known throughout the Arab world...
. The Kite is used ‘as a metaphor for love and for life at the border’, it explores, with depth and sometimes humor, 'the meaning of brides, of the hope they represent for divided families and, sometimes, for divided nations'.
In 2005, Chahal started a new project with the distinguished Lebanese-American Hollywood film-producer Elie Samaha. With the working title Too Bad for Them, the film is expected to combine comedy, music, dancing as well as politics, and North-South socio-economic disparities. However, the film was unreleased at the time of Chahal's death.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Too Bad for Them |
|
| 2002 | Le Cerf-Volant (The Kite) |
Global Film Initiative The Global Film Initiative is a non-profit film organization that supports cinematic works from developing nations and promotes cross-cultural understanding through an innovative use of film and non-traditional learning resources... ), New York New York New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east... , 2008 Bastia Bastia is a commune in the Haute-Corse department of France located in the northeast of the island of Corsica at the base of Cap Corse. It is also the second-largest city in Corsica after Ajaccio and the capital of the department.... , 2004 Belgium Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many... , 2004 Venice Film Festival The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the... , 2003 Venice Film Festival The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the... , 2003 Gillo Pontecorvo Gillo Pontecorvo was an Italian filmmaker. He worked as a film director for more than a decade before his best known film La battaglia di Algeri was released... , Venice Film Festival Venice Film Festival The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the... , 2003 Auxerre Auxerre is a commune in the Bourgogne region in north-central France, between Paris and Dijon. It is the capital of the Yonne department.Auxerre's population today is about 45,000... , 2003 |
| 2000 | Souha, survivre à l'enfer |
|
| 1999 | Civilisées (A Civilized People) |
Néstor Almendros Néstor Almendros, ASC was an Oscar winning Spanish cinematographer. One of the highest appraised contemporary cinematographers, "Almendros was an artist of deep integrity, who believed the most beautiful light was natural light...he will always be remembered as a cinematographer of absolute... Prize, New York New York New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east... , 2000 Venice Film Festival The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the... , 1999 |
| 1997 | Les Infidèles (The Infidels) |
Locarno Locarno is the capital of the Locarno district, located on the northern tip of Lake Maggiore in the Swiss canton of Ticino, close to Ascona at the foot of the Alps. It has a population of about 15,000... , 1997 |
| 1995 | Nos Guerres Imprudentes |
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... , 1996 Locarno Locarno is the capital of the Locarno district, located on the northern tip of Lake Maggiore in the Swiss canton of Ticino, close to Ascona at the foot of the Alps. It has a population of about 15,000... , 1995 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... , 1995 |
| 1991 | Ecrans de Sable (Screens of Sand) |
Venice Film Festival The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the... , 1991 |
| 1984 | Cheikh Imam |
|
| 1980 | Liban d'Autrefois (Lebanon Long Ago) |
Carthage Film Festival The Carthage Film Festival is a biannual October film festival hosted by the government of Tunisia. It alternates with the Damascus International Film Festival.... |
| 1978 | Pas à Pas (Step by Step) |
|