Duma (2011 Film)
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''Duma'' ("Dolls" in Arabic) is a 2011
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
i
documentary A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...
about
sexual violence Sexual violence is any harmful or unwanted Human sexual activity, sexual act, an attempt to obtain a sexual act through violence or coercion, or an act directed against a person's sexuality without their consent, by any individual regardless of ...
against Arab women in
Palestinian Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous p ...
and Arabian society. The film was written and directed by Abeer Zeibak Haddad and produced by her husband Suheil Haddad. It was the first film by a female
Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...
speaker to confront the taboo of sexual violence against Arab women, who are frequently forced into silence to preserve their family’s honor. The film chronicles the stories of five women who experienced sexual abuse as young girls, some of them being victimized by their own family members. The documentary was supported by the Israeli Authority for TV and Film, the New Foundation for Cinema and TV and the Green House project.


Synopsis

Zeibak Haddad, creates a puppet theater show that deals with child sexual abuse, after no one comes to the show because of the difficulty that the subject imposes, she decides to take her camera and journey from the north to the south of the country and document Arab women who have experienced
sexual violence Sexual violence is any harmful or unwanted Human sexual activity, sexual act, an attempt to obtain a sexual act through violence or coercion, or an act directed against a person's sexuality without their consent, by any individual regardless of ...
and hear their stories. Five protagonists dare to reveal the sexual abuse they endured in their close circle of family and friends. They all look for a way to express and to break the cycle of silence which has been imposed on them by family and society; their goal is to be heard, whether in privacy or out in the open. Their ambition is to turn the tables and lead abused women away from the circle of silence, shame and asphyxia, and towards self acceptance and the realization that they are allowed to continue to live. The camera encourages the women to gently sift through dark pits with the goal of revealing the pain, giving voice to it and finally freeing them of the need to shoulder the terrible secret alone, providing them with some relief from the humiliation and loneliness they have been living with for years.


Background

In 2000, Haddad first got interested in the subject of child sexual abuse after reading an article about it in children's literature. She started an enrichment program on the subject at the
early childhood education Early childhood education (ECE), also known as nursery education, is a branch of Education sciences, education theory that relates to the teaching of children (formally and informally) from birth up to the age of eight. Traditionally, this is ...
center in
Jaffa Jaffa (, ; , ), also called Japho, Joppa or Joppe in English, is an ancient Levantine Sea, Levantine port city which is part of Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel, located in its southern part. The city sits atop a naturally elevated outcrop on ...
where she worked. Haddad also decided that she would write a play; having never written one before, she started a draft and forwarded it to Ronit Hakham, an Israeli playwright, and together with director Shir Freibach, they created the play ''Chocolate''. The play used actors, puppets and video to tell the story of a girl who had been sexually abused at a playground. ''Chocolate'' premiered at the 2006 Haifa Children's Theater Festival where it won four prizes. Haddad wanted to present the play in Arab schools and communities, but they refused to stage the production because of the controversial nature of the subject. In 2009, she switched her medium to documentation, attending a year long seminar in
Nazareth Nazareth is the largest Cities in Israel, city in the Northern District (Israel), Northern District of Israel. In its population was . Known as "the Arab capital of Israel", Nazareth serves as a cultural, political, religious, economic and ...
organized by the
Second Authority for Television and Radio The Second Authority for Television and Radio (, ''HaRashut HaShniya Le'Televizya VeRadio'') is an Israeli commercial television and radio authority, established in the wake of a law passed by the Knesset in 1990. Besides conducting tenders and s ...
where she received instruction from professionals in the field. After completion of the program, she set out to find some Arab women who would agree to speak with her on camera about the sexual assault they had endured. According to her, "everyone I talked to said I wouldn’t find one woman to participate". She eventually found five women willing to talk to her; one appeared on camera, but the remaining four told of their abuse with their backs to the camera or had their faces blurred to prevent them from being recognized. They feared social and familial repercussions which could have resulted in them being murdered or an
honor killing An honor killing (American English), ''honour killing'' (Commonwealth English), or ''shame killing'' is a type of murder in which a person, usually a woman or girl, is killed by or at the behest of male members of their family or their male ...
. ----


Reception and awards

The film was screened in cultural centers, cinemas, universities, and schools; afterwards there was a discussion with audience members and students. The film was featured at the
Mumbai International Film Festival The Mumbai International Film Festival for Documentary, Short and Animation Films (MIFF) is a festival organized in the city of Mumbai (formerly Bombay) by the Films Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry of Infor ...
(2012), the Belgrade Documentary International Film Festival (2012), and the International Documentary Film Festival CRONOGRAF in Moldova (2012). It was also featured at the Urban TV festival in
Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
(2012), winning an award for Best Television and Video Production. Film critic Qais Qassem, in a review for Tsaloniki Film Festival wrote, "Duma indicates a new tendency in Palestinian cinema towards moving to self-display and criticism, which first started emerging in features with Elia Suleiman’s films and appears to be gaining ground". Dr. Eylem Atakav, wrote in ''The Huffington Post'' (UK), that "Duma (Dolls) is an extremely powerful documentary...the film creates a space for women to break the barrier of silence and fear and speak overtly about their experiences of rape and abuse...we need more films that scream the pain women go through while their identities and bodies are violated. Haddad's film does so brilliantly as it is brutally realistic; revealingly provocative, and exceedingly enthralling". Amy Kronish, author of the book ''World Cinema: Israel'' said "this is a film about very brave women who are speaking out about a terrible tragedy in their lives, about a subject that is still difficult for them to confront. For years, they were afraid of speaking out because they could be murdered by their male relatives for bringing disgrace to their families...the film is beautifully shot – the women are shot from the back, looking out a window, one is looking out at the sea, or slightly distorted in a window or mirror, or shot from behind in a moving car. One is also shot surrounded by a field of Sabras, a plant that symbolizes the deep contradiction between aggression and nature. This element of anonymity in the film makes it so authentic and emphasizes the fact that these four women are a voice for all those who have suffered similar experiences in their youth".


Further reading

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See also

* Honor Diaries *
Social stigma Stigma, originally referring to the visible marking of people considered inferior, has evolved to mean a negative perception or sense of disapproval that a society places on a group or individual based on certain characteristics such as their ...
tization * Women in Arab societies *
Sexual taboo in the Middle East The Middle East, which is commonly known as a region that includes most countries of Southwestern Asia, the Persian Gulf, the Arabian Peninsula, and several North African countries, and are often seen as part of a wider cultural and geopolitical ...
*
Arab culture Arab culture is the culture of the Arabs, from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Arabian Sea in the east, in a region of the Middle East and North Africa known as the Arab world. The various religions the Arabs have adopted throughout Histor ...
*
List of Palestinian films An A-Z list of films produced in the State of Palestine, the Palestinian Authority and by Palestinians - either under Israeli Civil Administration and Israeli-occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip. Numbers *'' 3000 Nights'' (2015) *'' 5 Broken Ca ...


References


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Duma a film by Abeer Zeibak Haddad Films about domestic violence Palestinian documentary films Documentary films about violence against women Women's rights in the Middle East