Murad Abu Eisheh reflects on the effect of war and the influence of television on a young girl in a Middle-Eastern war zone in the short drama TALA’VISION.
Film And TV Now spoke with the film-maker about the short.
FILM AND TV NOW: The film reflects on childhood innocence amidst tremendous conflict, both political and war-based. What was the start-off point for the story?
MURAD ABU EISHEH: The starting point was a small news article where I read that ISIS banned Televisions in their areas of control in 2014. This small article resonated with me and made me think of how my childhood would look like if someone would have taken the TV away from me, it was my only window to the world and it formed who I am today.
In such conflict areas Internet access is limited and the Television plays a major role in the lives of hundreds of thousands of children in Syria and Iraq.
This was the seed of the idea of the script of Tala’vision.
FTVN: What’s interesting is how the television is such a focal, but taboo point of reference for Tala. What is the overall sense about the role of television in the region where the story is set?
MAE: In a world controlled by ISIS the Television in one way or the other is sin and the corruption of the mind. But for little Tala ( our main character), it’s her only source of joy and solace in this complicated world that off course a 7 year old wouldn’t understand.
FTVN: Tell us about your cast.
MAE: Aysha Balasem, our leading actress, had been cast after a month long casting process. She is a Syrian girl that fled the war with her family to Jordan. At the time we cast her, she has never seen a camera in her life and never stood on a stage or in a film as an actress. But she absolutely charmed us in the casting sessions and we just knew that she is the one to play the role of Tala.
As for the father, he was played by the seasoned actor Ziad Bakri. A wonderful and talented actor that has an unbelievable talent in dealing with children. Ziad and Aysha formed such a strong connection on set that Aysha calls him dad till this day.
And for the neighbor role, our first choice was one of the most recognised faces in theater and film in Jordan Khaled Tarifi.
FTVN: Tell us about your production team.
MAE: Our production team consisted of 4 main producer, Esther Busch ( Germany ), Jude Kawwa ( Jordan ), Philipp Raube ( Germany ) and Gabriel Waldvogel (Germany). A wonderful team that believed in the story, and against all odds together the were able to make the shooting of this film happen.
FTVN: Where did you shoot and for how long?
MAE: We shot in a Palestinian refugee camp from 1948 that lays just out side the Jordanian capital Amman, called Zizia. And we shot the film in 7 days.
FTVN: Given that ISIS is a key element in the film, what challenges did you face whilst filming the short, given the ongoing concerns about their threat?
MAE: To be honest, I don’t think personally that ISIS plays a major role in the film, their existence was just a fact for our little Tala. We tried to focus on how children see war, and naturally they wouldn’t really understand what is happening around them.
But from a logistical point of view Jordan is a safe country that was not under a direct threat, and the only promotions that we had to make is asking our art department not to flash any ISIS flags or clothes in order not to spread any kind of miss-information or fear.
FTVN: You went to the German-Jordanian University in Amman, Jordan to earn your degree in Visual Communication and Design with a focus on film-making. Tell us about your time there and what were the key elements you learned that have helped you evolve as a film-maker?
MAE: My time at GJU was key for my personal development and realising that I want to be a film director.
As you mentioned I studied Design and Visual Communications, but as I started studying there I was 17 years of age, and I didn’t know exactly what I want to pursue in my life. During my second year of studies I took a film class, and It just clicked in that this is what I am suppose to do.
After that class I made sure that my studies focus is on film making, I took as much film classes I could and graduated with my first short film “Where is Al Rabee?”. I hold my time in GJU dear and close to my heart as it opened the door to the film making world for me and introduced me to a lot of people that inspired me to pursue my dream.
FTVN: Would you like to expand on the issues and themes in this film into a feature project?
MAE: I have been asked this question many times, especially by audiences that saw Tala’vision. But my answer is always no, the script of Tala’vision was written and designed as a short film. And on a personal level I feel too eager to work and film my new and other ideas for my upcoming feature films.
FTVN: Who are your key cinematic influences?
MAE: I am defiantly influenced by Asghar Farhadi as well as Nadine Labakis films. And from the western cinema Denis Villeneuve is one of the names that I look up to and admire .
FTVN: What social objectives are you keen to focus on in the future?
MAE: I like to focus on human driven stories out of the East Mediterranean region, it’s where I was born and where I connect to the most.
FTVN: Tell us about the Jordan film industry and what are the key benefits and strengths?
MAE: It’s a small industry but defiantly on the rise. One of its key strengths is the highly professional and trained crews, that it has due to Jordan being a major location for international and Hollywood films to shoot at. Its how I started working in the industry working and interning in huge American productions
FTVN: Finally, what are you most proud of about this short?
MAE: I’m most proud that the film was able to make it to a wide range of audiences around the world.
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