>> Catalog 2003

Debris

PALESTINE / 2001 / Arabic / Color, B&W / Video / 18 min

Director, Script: Abdel Salam Shehadeh
Photography: Ashraf Ali
Editing: Maher Abu Quta
Sound: Mahmood Al-Bayed
Music: Abdel Menem Edwan
Producer: Qassem Ali
Production Company, Source, World Sales: Ramattan Studios Co.
Al Wehda St. Shawa & Hossary Building 9th Fl. Gaza PALESTINE
Phone: 972-8-8230775
Fax: 972-8-2848288
E-mail: info@ramattan.com
URL: www.ramattan.com

Israeli tanks and bulldozers demolish a house that has been lived in and cherished for many years, and rip out the roots of an olive tree that was planted in anticipation of a child's birth. As the family watches the video footage, we see a deep sense of powerlessness and despair etched in their faces. The father thinks, “What has changed since my father’s house was demolished in the 1970s?” The boy thinks, “There’s nobody to defend me now, I have to rely on myself.” A Palestinian film that confronts emotions head on.

[Director’s Statement] Debris is not just a farmer’s story in which his farm has been bulldozed or his house demolished. Debris is a story of a Palestinian man who has lost his dignity, manhood, and vigor. Debris is a fantasy story, and a story of winged dreams that fly far away in order to touch the open sky to break through reality. Debris is a story of a generation who inherit humiliation, ignominy, and impotence, but are still standing. It is the story of men crying.

Abdel Salam Shehadeh Has extensive experience in television production and media as well as technical skills in camera and sound. He is a seasoned trainer in media production techniques. Has served as head of production at Ramattan Studios, Palestine since 1999, cameraman for Japanese television and the BBC, and correspondent for the Middle East Newspaper, London from 1993-94. Has worked extensively as director and cameraman for numerous television agencies including Reuters, Swiss Television, ABU, RTL, ITN, SRD, Mayadeen TV Productions, Gaza Program for Mental Health, Beesan Television Productions and others. Works include Palestinian Diaries (1991), The Environment (1994), Human Rights Are Women’s Rights (1995), Little Hands (1995-96), Close to Death (1997), Promotional Film on Gaza (1999), The Shadow (2000), and The Cane (2000).