Companion Encyclopedia of Middle Eastern and North African Film

"Cinema has played a significant part in Middle Eastern culture for a long time, but has yet to receive the attention which it deserves. In particular, the richness and complexity of the various cultural traditions which exist in this region require exploration and analysis, and it is the purpose of this book to address these issues. The Companion Encyclopedia of Middle Eastern and North African Film is divided into nine area chapters, each written by a leading scholar in the field. Each chapter covers the history and the major issues of film within that area, as well as providing bibliographies of the leading films, directors and actors." "The chapters comment on how local political and economic events have impacted on the national filmic traditions, and the distinctness of those traditions emerges in the detail which is provided. A balance is kept between presenting precise facts about individual films and those working in and around them, and discussing the wider theoretical and practical environment in which those cultural products figure." "This Companion Encyclopedia will be an invaluable reference tool for students and scholars of film, as well as those involved in Middle Eastern and Central Asian studies. The book contains more than 60 black and white photographs of featured films, references and suggestions for further reading at the end of each chapter, and the volume concludes with comprehensive name, film and general indexes."--Jacket.

Beyond its central premise, the book can be read through the connected lenses of Nonfiction. Those themes offer useful points of attention as the characters, ideas, or world develop, especially where the book complicates the expectations of its primary category.