ARTAFRICApeople to freely discuss certain issues without having the weight of the political context on their
shoulders. Such moments are essential in the development of communities.
What is your view on the necessity of cultural productions given some of the recent
global concerns?
To a certain extent, the world is changing very fast and the future may look bleak for younger
generations. This comes across very clearly in some of the films. At the end of a fascinating
Algerian documentary called Fi rassi rond-point by Hassen Ferhani, a young man says that someone
like him has only three possibilities; committing suicide, filling his head with ideas and things
and he’s dead-alive, or crossing the Mediterranean to try to reach Europe, but there is no way
a man like him can make it by working in his country. This shows an acute awareness of one’s
condition. By giving a voice to people who don’t have one, such festivals are reminders of where
people stand in the world, reminders that being dominated does not mean being duped.
FEATURE / CARTHAGE FILM FESTIVALCARTHAGE FILM FESTIVAL / IN CONVERSATION WITH PATRICIA CAILLE 9/20
26th Edition of the Carthage Film Festival, Tunisia. 2015. Photograph: Sven Christian.