New Voices in Arab Cinema

A Choice Outstanding Academic Title for 2015 New Voices in Arab Cinema focuses on contemporary filmmaking since the 1980s, but also considers the longer history of Arab cinema. Taking into consideration film from the Middle East and North Africa and giving a special nod to films produced since the Arab Spring and the Syrian crisis, Roy Armes explores themes such as modes of production, national cinemas, the role of the state and private industry on film, international developments in film, key filmmakers, and the validity of current notions like globalization, migration and immigration, and exile. This landmark book offers both a coherent, historical overview and an in-depth critical analysis of Arab filmmaking. Roy Armes is Professor Emeritus of Film at Middlesex University. He has published widely on world cinema and is author of Dictionary of African Filmmakers (IUP, 2008). “This landmark book focuses on contemporary filmmaking since the 1980s, but also considers the longer history of Arab cinema, offering both a coherent, historical overview and an in-depth critical analysis of Arab filmmaking.” “This overview of Arab filmmakers comes from an author with a proven record of valuable and accessible publications.” — Kevin Dwyer, American University in Cairo “Roy Armes' scholarly productivity and original contributions to film studies continue without pause. Serves as a corrective and counter-reading of received views and stereotypic assumptions about the Arab world.” — Michael T. Martin, Indiana University Bloomington “In short, for anyone interested in knowing about movements and trends in twenty-first-century Arab cinema, this survey is indispensable.52.2 2017” — Journal of Contemporary History “Armes’s vast research results in a book that addresses dozens of filmmakers and films in the various film-producing Arab countries. The author’s extensive work over the years on Third World cinema is manifested here in a deep understanding of Arab cinema and,particularly, the forces that have led to the filmic new voices of the 2000s.50.1 2016” — Review of Middle East Studies “I would like to conclude this review by giving this work a 'thumbs up' for its thoroughness and excellent research. The author manages to reveal many fascinating behind-the-scene stories about the filmmakers and films he writes about.Sept 15, 2016” — MELA NOTES MID EAST LIB ASSN “While the book’s general overview perhaps makes it more appropriate for the generalist or beginning student of Arab cinemas than the established researcher (and the author’s clear, readable style makes it very accessible), Armes has, as always, marshalled so much careful information here that even seasoned scholars will find that there are filmmakers or films here that they learn about for the first time.” — Journal of North African Studies “[P]rovides a panoramic overview of the cinematic works of the contemporary generation of Arab filmmakers who have used cinema as a way of exploring their cultural memory, national identity, and political history. Armes concentrates in particular on those Arab filmmakers who were born in the 1960s and who made their breakthrough in the 2000s.69.2” — Film Quarterly “Imbued with a spirit of constant discovery, superbly organized and even-handedly written, New Voices in Arab Cinema instantly becomes the go-to book on the subject and is an absolutely essential volume for any serious collection. `” — Choice