AMMAN - Jordanian filmmakers are struggling to enter the world of professional cinema, but face financial and cultural obstacles, experts say.
Shortage of funds to produce local feature films, insufficient movie halls across the Kingdom and a relatively small audience are among the main difficulties hindering the production of marketable Jordanian films, according to filmmakers and producers.
They believe these factors have curbed investment in numerous local talents, who have many story ideas that could be presented on screen, at a time when Jordanian sites have served as shooting locations for several award-winning international films.
At least half a dozen local scripts are now ready to be made into movies and are waiting for funds, according to the Amman-based Royal Film Commission (RFC), which was founded in 2003 to "develop an internationally competitive Jordanian film industry".
Decreasing financial allocations for the state-owned RFC have delayed the launch of a film fund, which would help achieve the commission's goal.
As part of a government's plan to cut down expenditure and narrow the budget deficit, which stood at JD1.5 billion last year, all ministries and public institutions' allocations were halved in the 2010 budget.
"Usually when there is a budget cut, it comes at the expense of culture," RFC Communication and Culture Manager Nada Doumani told The Jordan Times in a recent interview, noting that "some consider cinema as a luxury, although it is not".
She added that the RFC can provide the basic requirements of a cinema industry, such as locations, official permits and equipment, but a lack of funding remains the main obstacle.
There is no government that can provide total support for filmmaking, but a fund would facilitate the process, she remarked.
In spite of the financial woes, Doumani remains optimistic.
"We are on the right track and Jordan is witnessing rapid progress... remember that filmmaking is a specific art that requires time," she noted, highlighting the establishment of the Red Sea Institute of Cinematic Arts in Aqaba in 2008 for postgraduate degrees in cinema.
In addition to offering training on several techniques including filmmaking, montage and scriptwriting, the RFC facilitates the process of finding filming locations and obtaining official permission to shoot, for both local and international film crews.
The commission also holds film screenings and festivals at its Film House in the Jabal Amman neighbourhood. Entry is usually free.
Some 28 films, including four by local filmmakers, were shot in Jordan since the establishment of the RFC.
Among these are "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" (US), "Lawrence of Arabia: The Battle for the Arab World" (UK) and "The Holy Family" (Italy).
In 2008, the feature film "Captain Abu Raed", directed by Jordanian Amin Matalqa, received the Sundance Film Festival's World Cinema Audience Award for a dramatic piece. The previous year, Jordanian actor Nadeem Sawalha received the Muhr Best Actor Award for his role in the film at the 4th Dubai International Film Festival.
But many young filmmakers in Jordan are still waiting to turn their ideas into films.
"The talent is there but the funds are insufficient," said Yousef Hajj, who received training for beginners at the RFC last week.
Hollywood director and producer Mohydeen Quandour believes that money is the main challenge.
"It's a question of support... we hope that the government establishes a fund for young filmmakers," the 73-year-old Jordanian told The Jordan Times this week.
He cited Morocco as an example of an Arab country that succeeded in creating a cinema industry after launching a support fund, explaining that this boosted tourism to the North African kingdom.
"We have a wealth of ideas and stories in Jordan, but nobody in the world knows about it," Quandour pointed out.
Lebanese producer and director Abdelsalam Akkad, who is based in Amman, said the problem is more than just a lack of funding.
He believes that Jordanians do not go for local products in general, noting that citizens should regularly go to the cinema to watch local movies.
"Before asking why there is no cinema industry we should ask why there are no more than 250 cinema theatres in the country, for example," he noted, urging the government to provide incentives like reducing taxes on film production.
Jordanian TV producer Talal Awamleh agreed, noting there is no profitable market for producers in the Kingdom.
Awamleh, CEO of Arab Telemedia Services, which has produced dozens of TV series throughout the Arab world, said the RFC should focus more on supporting local filmmaking instead of promoting Jordan as a location to film international productions.
"They just recently started to pay attention to Jordanian ideas," he told The Jordan Times.
But 21-year-old filmmaker Hala Dasouqi believes that it is up to her peers to convince producers of their ideas, and not wait for production companies to approach them.
"The problem is not with the producers, it is with our way of presenting ideas... If we knew how to plan correctly, it would work," she told The Jordan Times at the Film House last week.
"This is a transition phase... we're on the road to professional filmmaking," she said.
By Thameen Kheetan
© Jordan Times 2010
