Agit-Prop, Punks and Poets

Much has been said about the democratising impact of digital media, yet perhaps not a lot with regards to the Arab world. In this region videos are emerging in a landscape saturated with fabricated images, and in which the means of fabrication and dissemination seem to be the exclusive monopoly either of those in control of the public sphere or those in control of the market. With respect to the current historical and political situation of the Arab world, video and film practiceis often perceived as one of the sharpest and most striking political acts. The selection of works in this programme attempts to illustrate the various ways in which digital media are used to subvert genres and challenge dominant media emissions in situations of political crises or violence. Streaming videos on the net is yet another story. The online platform Arabshorts.net is a pioneering experiment on many levels and will be presented and discussed as part of this programme.

The Poster, Samer Barkawi, sy 2008, 4 min

Red, Green and Black Indians, Sobhi al-Zobeidi, ps 2007, 5 min

We Will Win, Mahmoud Hojeij, lb 2007, 8 min

Faces Applauding Alone, Ahmad Ghossein, lb 2008, 7 min

Straight Stories – Part 1, Bouchra Khalili, ma/fr/es, 2006, 10 min

Transit, Taysir Batnji, ps/fr, 2004, 8 min

Lebanon / War (Lebanon Slash War), Rania Stephan, lb 2006, 30 min

Thu 04.02.2010 Find the complete daily transmediale program and more information here .