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Show Sat/Sun/Monnues, May 22-25, 2010 Chuck it all and move to Beirut Film Music Festival showcases unique project Submitted by David Rolfc How many people would have the audacity to give away all of their earthly possessions, pack a bag, and move to Beirut, Lebanon, in order to pursue a dream of making a film about its people and culture? That's exactly what Seth Koury, a 31-year-old filmmaker and former Cal State Journalism Grad School student, did back in May of 2008. The fruits of his labor, "Sounds of Beirut," is screening this Saturday at the Park City Film Music Festival. Born a second-generation American into a family of Lebanese descent, Koury was raised in part by his great aunts who educated him about his Lebanese roots. "That's why I dedicated the film to them," he says. "This was more than just an ambitious film that I wanted to make, it was very personal, like my life had led up to this moment." Unlike his father, who - tike many first-generation Americans - was interested only in his assimilation into American culture, Koury was deeply fascinated by his roots. The Beirut he learned about during his childhood was a place of beauty and culture, and it did not coincide with the media coverage he began to see during the terrible civil wars the country has suffered. There was a disconnect between what was being covered and what was really going. Koury vowed to fight against what he felt were media-created stereotypes and cliches about Beirut and Lebanon in general. C-5 The Park Record The idea of making a documentary about Beirut and its culture took shape while Koury was a student at Cal State pursuing a Master's degree in mass communications. To him, vision, not theory, was the important component in being a filmmaker, and he most definitely had vision. Having visited Beirut briefly back in 2004 while traveling alone through Europe, he knew Beirut was "the type of place where you can go and not know anybody and within two days you have a whole network of friends. People are just very open to travelers, foreigners, to everybody," he says. He intended to move there by himself, become a local, and make a film about the art and music scene. After living part of a semester in a garage off campus to save money for the trip, Koury donated all of his belongings to charity, got rid of his apartment, packed only what he needed and set off. "When I moved there, I really moved there," he explains. "I totally immersed myself in the culture. I wanted to capture the essence of the city and to do that, you gotta become a local. I didn't even bring my iPod with all of the familiar music that 1 listen to because I wanted to lose myself in the music there." He took a small apartment in a central neighborhood, avoiding hotels or anything remotely transient. His goal of capturing the art and music scene quickly proved too ambitious, however. There was so much going on culturally that he had to make a choice in order for the film to work. "People are so open, so curious over there. They live in this situation where they have this painful past and uncertain future because there's still a lot of tension and conflict that goes on and people are just interested in everything. I've never seen a place where the most obscure form of experimental art draws an enormous crowd,", he says. "I had to narrow it down when I got there and I chose music, because with music I think you can show more. "I wanted to show a different side of Lebanon," he adds. "Music was an obvious choice because it crosses all cultural boundaries and there is such a huge and diverse music scene there. I let the narrative thread just flow through with the interviews of the artists and with their music, so it's selfcontained in a sense and it's a lot easier to do that with music than with somebody painting a picture or somebody writing." There was no set plan or schedule. Koury considered the film "a living, breathing I wanted to show a different side of Lebanon. Music was an obvious choice because it crosses all cultural boundaries and there is such a huge and diverse music scene there." SETH KOURY I'ilmtnukcr, "Seutnls u{ Beirut" organism that evolved weekly." He went where the music, the people and the stories led him and he filmed what he thought was important. Working without a crew and with very little equipment, he was able to move quickly and easily around the city. "There were times I would want it to look like there was a bigger crew, so when I was filming a band playing a song I would film a section of a song, like a bridge, from one angle, and then run as fast as I could to another spot to shoot the same Under The Bell Towe? section when they played it again from another angle." He used tricks like this so that when it came time to edit, he would have some variety to choose from and could imitate a bigger budget without incurring one. The story itself takes place during the weeks following a small civil war that erupted in the streets of Beirut in May 2008. "It is about the role that music plays in Beirut during these trying times, what inspires musicians to create, what the music means to them and what it means to the audience. The story arch however, instead of a chronological sequence of events, is broken up into four parts that capture the atmosphere of the city. There is an introduction, then Part I: The Gateway from East to West, which part shows the diversity of the scene and how everything there has a rich mixture of Eastern and Western influences. Part II: Born from Crisis goes deeper, explaining some elements of the conflicts such as causes and how the conflicts affected certain musician's lives and their music. Part III: Escape shows how the musicians and the audience use music as a way to, in a sense, escape the troubles of the city. Part IV: Live For the Day wraps up the story explaining how the painful past and uncertain future has created a live for the day' culture in the city where people try to make the most of their time and enjoy their lives. And in the end, there is an epilogue that explains that no matter what, the people in Beirut love their city and never want to leave it." Seth wanted the musicians and the people to tell the stories themselves so he tried to avoid using any familiar devices to shape the film. "I wanted to avoid things I've seen a thousand times. Narration, I didn't splice in ANSWERS FOR TODAY p A L 1 M :A; c 0 B A S S T R 0 U T G S 0 U G R 1 D E •• • A D A M U S R D A • S TH LE 0X IG cu A G E Z 1 L C H m 1 s N E S I E R E • •I T A L 1 C S |B A D A T AIR 1 0 S E F A A N A L 1 Q U I A D U L T L 0 N 1 A N D A N :K M0 A V T 0 T 1 E D T H E I (A; T L L H D E E N I 1 MAINSTREET www.matnstreetpizzanoodle.com Park City's Family Restaurant since 1989 • •" % 1* TAKE 27*% OFF YOUR ENTIRE ORDER! Please present coupon. Not valid on alcohol. Not valid on holidays. Not valid with any other discounts or with gift cards. Expires 6.30.10 530 MAIN STREET t P.O. BOX 2002 • PARK CITY, UTAH 84060 TELE; 435-6454678 • FAX: 435-445-8695 WWW.molnitrcetpiiiQnoodle.com WE ACCEPT CASH, VISA, MASTERCARD, DISCOVER CAHD, OIMERS CLUB, & AMERICAN EXPRESS W.'.V-V.V.W.'.W.'.Vi-.W.W Please see Filmmaker, C-7 |