By: Hana Saada
ALGIERS- The public screening of the historical movie on Ahmed Bey (c. 1784-1850), the Ottoman ruler, is looming large!
A remarkable progress in all the pictorial and technical aspects has been made, pending the public screening, slated for the upcoming months, where you can enjoy the film in Arabic, the Algerian dialect and Amazigh along with English subtitles.
The 2h-3m anti-colonialist film ‘Ahmed Bey’ whose filming had ended, depicts the freedom fighter Ahmed Bey’s life from 1826 to 1848 when he ruled the Regency of Algiers. Ahmed Bey, who had memorized the entire Qur’an by heart, was the ruler of the Eastern province of Constantine during the reign of the Ottoman Empire. He dedicated his life to fighting French colonialism. Under his command, he succeeded in uniting well-known tribes, thanks to his cleverness with a view to staging battles against the French occupier. He is one of the heroes of Algerian resistance movements against the invading colonialists that preceded the outbreak of Algeria Glorious Liberation War.
According to the “Celebrity Live” program, the movie, whose shooting took place between 2018 and 2019 in CACD cinema town in Algiers, Sidi Rached in Tipaza, and Bou Saâda in the province of M’sila, in cooperation with Iranian specialists, is fully financed by the Algerian Ministry of Culture and Arts.
The feature-length film is directed by the Iranian filmmaker Jamal Shourjeh and produced by Samira Hadj Jilani. The Iranian cineaste Danesh Eqbashavi, was, also, collaborating, directing the war scenes for “Ahmed Bey”.
The production was entrusted to the Algerian Center for Cinema Development, belonging to the Algerian Ministry of Culture and Arts. The center, noteworthy, is responsible for the commercial, industrial and artistic development of Algerian cinematography and its promotion through the production and co-production of films, the enhancement of the Algerian cinematographic image locally and abroad, the recovery and preservation of film archives as well as the promotion of films of a cultural nature.
All the actors and actresses of the film are Algerians, while the behind-the-scenes elements are Iranians. The Iranian team gave consultation on the stunt, make-up, shooting and sound-on-film. The costumes and film sets were designed by Iranian experts.
The film’ screenwriter is Rabih Zarif, and the scenario of the battles was written by Fathi Reza. The role of the protagonist “Ahmed Bey” was portrayed by the actor Ahmed Al-Zaoui, and that of “Dey Hussein” went to the French actor Gérard Depardieu. The late Rym Ghazali, for her part, portrayed the role of “Kaboura”.
Technically, the soundtrack of the film was recorded in the United States of America, with maestro Fahir Atakoglu taking the helm. The latter is well-known for his fabulous masterpieces, including those of the series, among others, “Harim el-Sultan”, a music of love and victories, Omar Ibn Al-Khattab, and Saraya Abdeen.
This Iranian-Algerian cooperation in the field of cinema is the second of its kind, after Algeria sought help from Iranian experts in cosmetics and accessories led by Mrs. Sudaba Khosravi for the realization of the film “Ibn Badis” by Syrian Director Basil Al-Khatib.
This experience is highly appreciated by the Algerian side, as expressed by the former Culture Minister Azzedine Mihoubi, who considered this joint project of film-making with Iran as an opportunity for getting familiar with the Iranian cinema style as well as exchanging cultural knowledge between the two countries.
“Iranian cinema occupies a prominent position in the world thanks to its valuable experiences. Filmmaker Jamal Shurjeh, who undertakes the task of directing this film, is considered as one of the best Iranian directors. The staff conducts a lot of meticulous research and investigation into the historical stages of Ahmed Bey’s life and the environment in which he lived, the clothes, customs and drawings used in that era,” Mr. Mihoubi highlighted.
For her part, the Algerian producer of the film, Samira Hadj Djilani, commended the high professionalism of the Iranian technicians who spared no efforts for the success of this production, highlighting that the Iranian staff provided training sessions to Algerians, enabling them to master the technique side, including the special effects, costumes, pictures sets, and make up. 27 Algerian costume designers were formed in their field of specialty by Iranian specialists, while Iranian specialists in the war scenes and special effects for “Ahmed Bey”, trained two officers from the Algerian Army (Algeria’s People National Army). With respect to makeup, decoration, pictures sets, Iranians did not skimp on educating their Algerian counterparts, sharing with them all their expertise and knowledge.
