French novelist of Algerian origin Samir Amin reverently applies to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature at the Swedish Academy in Stockholm. In his speech to the audience, he acknowledges the French language, which contributed to his reaching this position, but believes that there are other writers who deserve the prize than him.
After that, Amine was inundated with invitations and meetings after the news of receiving the prestigious award spread, and he rejected all but one invitation that touched his heart and ignited the flame of nostalgia, an invitation from the Algerian municipality of Sidi Mimoun, his hometown, which invited him to grant him the status of an honorary citizen. The famous writer does not hesitate to travel to his hometown to answer the invitation. There, mixed emotions are mixed in his chest as he tries to react to the new reality of his hometown, which he left and emigrated years ago in the 2022 film "Citizen of Honor" by the French-Algerian director Mohamed Hamidi.
This film is a model of contemporary Algerian cinema, as it belongs to Algeria in terms of subject matter, issue, filming locations and origins of the director and main actor "Kad Mourad", but it is classified as French like many films directed by Algerian directors taking advantage of French capabilities in this regard. In terms of genre, it is a funny comedy film, as it has tragic tinges, meaning that it carries a mixture that suits the Arab viewer strongly, but the barrier of translation and distribution stands in the way of the Arab viewer from seeing this artistic creation of Algerian creators.
All these facts about the state of Algerian films have long opened up a debate about the state of cinema in Algeria and the desire to present a national film industry in the country. The debate was initially elitist but turned into a political and economic debate after the advent of new President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and the political movement that the country has witnessed in the past four years. Finally, a decision was issued to establish the first cinema city in the Tinrkuk district of the southern province of Timimoun.
This interest and this step are encouraging, especially as they are in line with Arab experiences, especially from Maghreb countries such as Tunisia and Morocco, which have invested in the film sector and achieved great success on the economic level, although the artistic level lacks much development. Therefore, it is important that the Algerian experience benefit from the advantages and disadvantages of these Arab experiences in this regard, because the internal debate in Algeria, which has lasted for months now, seems to carry more than it can bear, and we do not hope that it will lead to the freezing of the project like many projects that get lost in the furnace of government bureaucracies.
Cinematographic Industry Law
Like any authority, the Algerian government has started thinking about it by enacting a new law. The law was debated, and when presented to the Council of Ministers, it was rejected or rather postponed for further societal discussion and further proposals. Although the idea sounds good, it clearly indicates the first obstacles to moving forward with such projects, namely administrative and routine obstacles, especially with regard to the resources required to be provided by the Ministry of Finance and the allocation of land from the Ministry of Construction.
Usually, in such major projects, the powers of the various ministries and agencies conflict because the laws establishing them from the beginning did not take such projects into account. The matter also raised the grievances and demands of workers in the Algerian film sector and raised the legitimate question of the effectiveness of a project that promotes Algerian cinema without promoting and preserving the rights of workers in this sector.
These are just some of the examples of obstacles and challenges that may stop the project or, in the best scenario, slow down the pace of its completion. It is therefore important to draw on the experience of neighbouring countries in overcoming these obstacles. It is no secret that the bodies empowered to revitalize the film sector in Jordan and Morocco, for example, enjoy royal patronage and support.
This is no coincidence, as it has allowed the Royal Film Commission in Jordan and the Ouarzazate studios in Morocco to bypass much of the government bureaucracy. This is the trap into which Tunisia's studios fell, for example, and delayed Tunisia's experience of investing in the film sector than its counterparts in Jordan and Morocco. To be fair, this was not the only factor, as the security aspect represented an important challenge for the industry in Tunisia because of which many international production companies were reluctant to film in the country.
Another important thing in Algeria is to resolve the issue of the relationship with France in revitalizing this sector, because there is a huge human wealth for Algeria in France working in the film sector and is influenced by the French school of cinema. Of course, France will not leave the Algerian sector without trying to invest in it and influence it in every way as part of strengthening the Francophonie in the country.
Therefore, this factor should not be overlooked and dealt with realistically and decisively at the same time to benefit from the Algerian human experience in France without copying a carbon copy of French cinema that erases the Algerian-Arab identity.
Algeria fought the battle of liberation after a difficult labor and then fought the battle of Arabization after a difficult labor as well, and did not wake up from it, until it entered the Red Decade and its political consequences, and it is still exhausted and tired. Only by taking the same steps as before, will it be able to overcome the administrative and artistic obstacles related to the promotion of the arts and cinema sector at its core, by placing the whole issue within a general national framework in order to localize Algerian cinema as a locally-made cultural project that can be exported and that takes into account Arab and African audiences before courting European audiences. Algerian cinema is no less than Nigerien cinema, which, despite difficulties, has made huge leaps at the national and African levels.