daughter of sudanese film legend preserves his legacy
Last Updated : GMT 09:03:51
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today
Last Updated : GMT 09:03:51
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today

As she drove past an apartment complex

Daughter of Sudanese film legend preserves his legacy

Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today

Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today Daughter of Sudanese film legend preserves his legacy

Sara Jadallah, the daughter of legendary Sudanese filmmaker Jadallah Jubara
Khartoum - Arab Today

As she drove past an apartment complex on a street in Khartoum, Sara Jadallah turned silent. 

It was here that her late father, the legendary film-maker Jadallah Jubara, set up Sudan's first private film studio in the 1970s.

But in 2008, following an eight-year court battle over ownership of the land, the government demolished Studio Jad.

The demolition, shortly before the film-maker's death at the age of 88, left little trace of the studio.

But stopping next to the blocks of flats that now stand in its place, Jadallah pointed at a white patch on an old wall among the new buildings.

"The screen is still there," she said.

With her father's studio gone, Jadallah has vowed to preserve his life's work.
With help from German experts, she has started digitising his entire film collection to create what she believes is Sudan's first private archive of 15 and 35mm films.

"Through his camera he documented Sudan's history. I want to preserve this legacy," Jadallah, 66, told AFP at her home in a southern Khartoum district.

Jubara was once an officer in the British army. Shortly after World War II he began work as a projectionist in a British mobile film unit. 

He went on to capture iconic moments in Sudan's history, including the hoisting of the country's flag as it gained independence from Britain in 1956.

In a career spanning more than five decades, he produced more than 100 documentaries and four feature films, including a famous 1984 love story "Tajooj".

But years of storage in poor conditions have taken a toll on his film archives.

"Film rolls have a life span and because of exposure to heat and dust they have been damaged," said Jadallah.

- Journey into the past -
In his early years, Jubara faced resistance from a conservative Sudanese society, making it difficult for him to find actors.

But a determined Jubara encouraged family members to work with him, including Jadallah.

"He believed that cameramen were the most important people in the world... and in their hands was the most important weapon," she said.

Jadallah, who made a name for herself as a national swimming champion despite having polio as a child, also studied film in Cairo.

She worked with her father when he began to lose his eyesight due to old age, helping him film part of an adaptation of Victor Hugo's "Les Miserables".

Jubara's documentaries included films on Darfur, where a deadly conflict since 2003 has killed tens of thousands of people.

His early films preserved a snapshot of Sudanese society before the 1989 coup that installed an Islamist-backed regime.
Prior to the coup, Sudan was home to more than 60 cinemas, including 16 in Khartoum that often screened films from Hollywood and Bollywood.

Today, after years of economic hardships and government restrictions on importing foreign films, just three cinemas operate in Khartoum.

German film-maker Katharina von Schroeder, who is helping Jadallah to digitise Jubara's collection, said watching his work was like taking a journey into the past.

"There were lot more enterprises and factories at that time, a lot more night clubs," she told AFP.

"Without any judgement, it was a different place," she said as she showed footage from Jubara's collection.

In one commercial, a young Jadallah is seen dressed in a red top and a skirt.

In another clip, Sudanese couples in Western clothes danced at an late evening open-air party -- something rare in today's Sudan.

"There is no conflict between religion and cinema," said Jadallah, "but some extremists reject cinema without even understanding it."

"If you don't have cinema, you don't have a voice," she said.

- A gift to Sudan -

Over his five-decade career, Jubara produced more than 100 hours of film. 

Digitising them is an enormous job. Around 40 hours have been processed so far, at a cost of tens of thousands of dollars.

The project has received backing from a German foundation, the Arsenal Institute for Film and Video Art, and the German embassy in Khartoum.

"It was definitely worth saving this heritage... and Sara had this wish to preserve her father's legacy," said Schroeder.

The processing was done in Berlin. Jadallah was initially hesitant to hand over rare footage.

"I could understand that... in films as opposed to digital, you just have one copy and there's nothing you can do if it's gone," said Schroeder.

"As far as I know this is the only private film archive for 15 and 35 mm materials in Sudan," she said.

Tayeb Mahdi, director of a Khartoum-based film school, said the project was a fitting tribute to Jubara.

"This government doesn't care about cinema, while the private sector is disinterested," he said.

"Despite this, Jubara kept on making films."

For Jadallah, preserving her father's legacy is a gift to Sudan.

"I feel sad when I remember my father witnessing his studio being demolished... I feel sad when there is no cinema," she said, wiping away tears.

"I want to preserve his films, because Sudan's future generations should see their country's history."

Source: AFP

almaghribtoday
almaghribtoday

Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

daughter of sudanese film legend preserves his legacy daughter of sudanese film legend preserves his legacy

 



Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

daughter of sudanese film legend preserves his legacy daughter of sudanese film legend preserves his legacy

 



Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today Skincare PR Performance Full Year 2017

GMT 09:22 2018 Monday ,22 January

Skincare PR Performance Full Year 2017
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today New hunt for flight MH370 gets under way

GMT 11:03 2018 Wednesday ,24 January

New hunt for flight MH370 gets under way
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today Modern colorful bedroom renovation

GMT 10:57 2017 Thursday ,21 December

Modern colorful bedroom renovation
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today Puigdemont candidate for Catalan president

GMT 13:56 2018 Tuesday ,23 January

Puigdemont candidate for Catalan president
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today Turkey detains dozens more

GMT 10:47 2018 Wednesday ,24 January

Turkey detains dozens more

GMT 09:45 2018 Friday ,19 January

Syria threatens to 'destroy' Turkish warplanes

GMT 10:29 2014 Thursday ,11 September

Bahrain king receives Amr Moussa

GMT 13:56 2011 Tuesday ,07 June

Jordan\'s new FIFA VP seeks to address hijab ban

GMT 23:38 2017 Saturday ,30 September

Goals of International Sports and Leisure

GMT 11:21 2016 Monday ,08 February

Germany shuts down German arm of Canada's Maple Bank

GMT 09:10 2015 Wednesday ,24 June

France summons US ambassador over spying claims

GMT 13:06 2014 Sunday ,02 November

More daylight means more active, healthier kids

GMT 02:41 2016 Wednesday ,29 June

NASA tests deep space rocket booster

GMT 12:16 2015 Friday ,09 October

Blue skies, frozen water detected on Pluto
Almaghrib Today, almaghrib today
 
 Almaghrib Today Facebook,almaghrib today facebook  Almaghrib Today Twitter,almaghrib today twitter Almaghrib Today Rss,almaghrib today rss  Almaghrib Today Youtube,almaghrib today youtube  Almaghrib Today Youtube,almaghrib today youtube

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

.almaghribtoday .almaghribtoday .almaghribtoday .almaghribtoday
almaghribtoday almaghribtoday almaghribtoday
almaghribtoday
بناية النخيل - رأس النبع _ خلف السفارة الفرنسية _بيروت - لبنان
almaghribtoday, Almaghribtoday, Almaghribtoday