Johan Gimonprez - Shadow World
Renowned Belgian video artist and director Johan Gimonprez is best known for such internationally acclaimed films as 'Dial H-I-S-T-O-R-Y' and 'Double Take'. His work often focuses on political themes and the changing media perception of historical events.
During this evening, we will show four different films and documentaries by him. In 'Shadow World', he exposes the global arms trade and the decisive role of the West. 'What I Will' is a one-minute rollercoaster in which Palestinian poet Suheir Hammad searches for a glimmer of hope amid military parades and anti-aircraft artillery. In 'Three Thoughts on Terror', investigative journalists Robert Fisk, Jeremy Scahill and Vijay Prashad approach the concept of terror from their own perspectives. In 'Two Travellers to a River', Palestinian actress Manal Khader recites a poem by Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish, a pithy reflection on 'how things could have been'.
In this artistic investigative documentary about the gloomy world of international arms trade filmmaker Johan Grimonprez (Dial H-I-S-T-O-R-Y, Double Take) seamlessly weaves talking heads, archival material and philosophical thoughts together. Shadow World is not only eye candy for the movie lover, but also an eye-opener and a wake-up call. In the aftermath of a war rumors of bribery, conflicts of interest and unethical profiteering are surfacing time and again. A shady world of arms dealers, corruption, greed, bribery and dark back rooms.
But also corrupt politicians, secret services, military commanders and world leaders whose moral compass is off course suddenly emerge. Their only objective seems to be prolonging the war and gaining profit, regardless of the human and moral costs and sacrifices Based on testimonies of investigative journalists, arms dealers, lobbyists, politicians and insiders, Shadow World shows how the international arms trade is a threat to democracy. Not only in the countries where the weapons are actually used, but also in the West, where they are manufactured and come from. Grimonprez delivers a powerful argument against this world of dark back rooms and a plea for more cooperation, openness and dialogue.
As historian Howard Zinn once said, ‘War dominating our history does not mean it has to be part of our future.
In this one-minute rollercoaster Palestinian-Brooklynite poet Suheir Hammad carries her powerful poem of dissent towards a glimmer of hope in the midst of military parades and anti-aircraft guns. What I Will provides a preview of Johan Grimonprez's feature Shadow World based on Andrew Feinstein’s book The Shadow World: Inside the Global Arms Trade.
When asked a question on politics, late Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish once answered: “I write about love to expose the conditions that don’t allow me to write about love.” In Two Travellers to a River Palestinian actress Manal Khader recites such a poem by Mahmoud Darwish: a concise reflection on how things could have been.
In Three Thoughts on Terror, investigative journalists Robert Fisk, Jeremy Scahill and Vijay Prashad approach the concept of terror from their respective angles. Fisk dismantles terror as a term that is rendered meaningless to alienate political movement from its origins: justice and injustice. Scahill points out that terror is a relative term, as its interpretation depends on which side of the bombing you’re on. Using the absurd example of the ‘The Hague Invasion Act’, he shows how the US sticks its thumb in the eye of international law: “Some republicans in the US Congress were discussing putting forward legislation that they referred to as “The Hague Invasion Act”, the idea that if US personnel were ever to be brought to The Hague on war crimes charges, the US could deploy military forces to The Hague to snatch those personnel and liberate them from the evil clutches of international law.” Vijay Prashad takes rather a philosophical approach, reciting Pakistani poet Faiz Ahmad Faiz: “what you see around you, leaves you with no obligation but to feel something. And if that feeling cannot be controlled, you have to do something about it. You can’t refuse this world.”
