PRESS KIT - Out of Cordoba

Transcription

PRESS KIT
“Out of Cordoba” Press Kit, P. 1
Out of Cordoba:
Averroes and Maimonides in Their Time and Ours
A Documentary Film by Jacob Bender
PRESS KIT
www.outofcordoba.com
(Search FACEBOOK for “Out of Cordoba”)
CONTACT:
Jacob Bender
Director
T: 1 917 660 3805
E: [email protected]
© 2010
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Director’s Statement............................................................................................................3
Synopses ..............................................................................................................................4
Production Personnel ..........................................................................................................6
Public Screenings ...............................................................................................................11
Production Still Photos...................................................................................................... 12
Director Photos.................................................................................................................. 14
“Out of Cordoba” in the Press ........................................................................................... 15
Major Funders ...................................................................................................................22
Advisory Board ..................................................................................................................23
Endorsements....................................................................................................................24
Poster .................................................................................................................................25
Director’s Statement
As an American living just a few miles from the World Trade Center, the attacks of 11
September 2001 posed several challenges. The terrorist assault on New York, with its 3,000 civilian deaths, led many commentators in the United States to declare that the path of interfaith
dialogue and mutual tolerance, to which I had dedicated my adult life, was dangerously naïve.
Additionally, the eruption of suicide bombings in the Middle East, and in Madrid and London,
left those of us in the Jewish community committed to Israeli-Palestinian reconciliation in the
Holy Land feeling terribly outnumbered. Yet, as an artist and filmmaker, the attacks of 9/11 also
offered me the opportunity of turning tragedy into hope, and fear into faith.
It was this last road, then, that I choose to travel, embarking upon a nearly nine-year
journey to explore Spain’s heritage of “convivencia” as an inspiration for the present. In making
the stories of Averroes the Muslim and Maimonides the Jew the subject of my documentary
film “Out of Cordoba”, I wished to bring to audiences around the world the contemporary relevance of these two thinkers from 12th century Cordoba. The two “wise men of Cordoba” are
not only representatives of a time when Andalucia, and Cordoba in particular, was the most
advanced region on the European continent, but their biographies and writings are testament to
an understanding of history that posits and values cooperation over conflict, cross-fertilization
over conquest; in short, a “dialogue of civilizations” over a “clash of civilizations.”
As an American artist, I am humbled by the support I received for “Out of Cordoba” from
many institutions across Spain, a nation which showed such remarkable courage after the 2004
bombings in Madrid by launching, with Turkey, the “Alliance of Civilizations Initiative” at the
United Nations. And as a Jew, I am honored that much additional support for “Out of Cordoba”
came from Muslims around the world, a demonstration that mutual tolerance can yet triumph
over terrorism, and reconciliation over resentment.
Finally, “Out of Cordoba” is not only about Averroes and Maimonides, but also the story
of the remarkable Christians, Muslims, and Jews I have met during the making of the film. These
brave souls are living proof that religious faith can yet be a source and inspiration for compassion in today’s world.
Jacob Bender
New York, NY
May 2010
SYNOPSES
50-Word
OUT OF CORDOBA is a documentary about Averroes the Muslim, and Maimonides the Jew,
the two leading thinkers of Islamic Spain. The film explores the historical importance of these
two “wise men of Cordoba,” as well as their contemporary impact on today’s Jews, Muslims, and
Christians, and interfaith relations.
75-Word
OUT OF CORDOBA is a documentary about Jews, Muslims, and Christians struggling against
the hijacking of their religions by extremists. The film profiles contemporary people of faith, who,
inspired by two “wise men” from the city of Cordoba in medieval Spain — Averroes the Muslim,
and Maimonides the Jew — are challenging the propositions that there is an inevitable “clash
of civilizations” between the West and the Muslim world, and an unsolvable conflict between
Muslims and Jews.
100-Word
OUT OF CORDOBA is about people of faith struggling against the hijacking of their religions
by extremists. The film profiles individuals who, inspired by two medieval thinkers — Averroes
the Muslim, and Maimonides the Jew — are promoting the values of democracy and tolerance.
The film follows its director, an American Jew, on his journey around the Mediterranean after
the attacks of 9/11, where, seeking to recover his belief in the possibility of interfaith reconciliation, he meets people who are utilizing their faith to challenge the proposition that there is an
inevitable “clash of civilizations” between the West and the Muslim world.
150-Word
OUT OF CORDOBA is a feature documentary about Jews, Muslims, and Christians struggling
for coexistence and against the hijacking of their respective religions by extremists. The film profiles several people, who, inspired by two “wise men” from the city of Cordoba in medieval Spain
— Rabbi Moses Maimonides the Jew, and Averroes the Muslim — are promoting the values of
democracy and tolerance. The film follows its director, an American Jew, on his journey around
the Mediterranean to Spain, Morocco, France, Italy, Egypt, and Israel. Seeking to recover his
belief in the possibility of interfaith reconciliation after the 9/11 attacks near his home, he meets
with Jews, Christians, and Muslims who are utilizing their religious traditions to challenge the
propositions that there is an inevitable “clash of civilizations” between the West and the Muslim
world, and an unsolvable conflict between Muslims and Jews.
200-Word
OUT OF CORDOBA is a feature documentary about Jews, Muslims, and Christians struggling
for coexistence and against the hijacking of their respective religions by extremists. The film
profiles several contemporary people of faith, who, inspired by two “wise men” from the city
of Cordoba in medieval Spain — Averroes the Muslim, and Rabbi Moses Maimonides the Jew
— are challenging the propositions that there is an inevitable “clash of civilizations” between the
West and the Muslim world, an incompatibility between Islam and democracy, and an unsolvable conflict between Muslims and Jews. “Out of Cordoba” is also the story of the film’s director, Jacob Bender, an American Jew and peace activist, as he undertakes a journey around the
Mediterranean world after the attacks of 9/11 — in Spain, Morocco, France, Egypt, Palestine,
and Israel — following in the footsteps of these two “wise men of Cordoba” in search of Muslims,
Jews, and Christians committed to utilizing their religious traditions as sources of tolerance,
democracy, and human rights. Among the extraordinary people encountered by Jacob is a Muslim
leader in Spain who declares a “fatwa” against Osama bin Laden after the Al-Qaeda attacks at
the Madrid train station, a rabbi in Israel who defends Palestinian homes against demolition by
the Israeli army, Egyptian human rights activists attempting to democratize their country, and
an art historian decoding the secrets of one of the most enigmatic of Renaissance paintings. The
film explores the little-known but vast influence of Muslim thinkers upon the West, as well as
presenting inspiring stories that have been often been neglected by the mainstream media in
favor of a simplistic concentration on Muslim “terrorists” and “fundamentalists.”
PRODUCTION PERSONNEL
Jacob Bender, Director
Jacob Bender is a documentary filmmaker, video producer, photographer, graphic
designer, and interfaith consultant. During a career spanning more than thirty years, Jacob
has produced dozens of television, video, audiovisual and radio programs, graphic and print
projects, museums exhibitions and educational programs. His clients have included a wide range
of major corporations, such as American Express and Time Warner, and nonprofit organizations,
including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, NASA,
The Baltimore Zoo, and the United States National Park Service.
During the many years Jacob lived in Israel, he worked as an audio-visual producer at the
Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum in Jerusalem, as well as for the Israel Ministry of Education.
Jacob was the Audio-Visual Producer for the United States Constitutional Bicentennial
Exhibition in 1985. He is the director of the television documentary, “The Voice Still Speaks:
Jews and Revelation,” broadcast nationally in 1999 on The Odyssey Channel, and “So Goes a
Nation: Lawyers and Communities,” produced for Fordham University Law School and narrated
by Sam Waterson and Jimmy Smits. “So Goes a Nation” has been screened at over 200 law
schools around the world.
Following the attacks of September 11, 2001, Jacob was one of the initiators of interfaith
dialogue with the American Muslim community. He has spoken dozens of times at mosques and
at large gatherings of Muslims in the United States, particularly at the conventions of the Islamic
Society of North America, the largest Muslim organization in the US.
In 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, Jacob was a featured speaker at the annual Doha Conferences
on Religious Dialogue, organized by the Foreign Ministry of Qatar. In 2008, he was invited by
the Saudi Embassy in Washington, DC, to participate in the historic interfaith conference in
Madrid initiated by HRH King Abdallah of Saudi Arabia. In January and June of 2009, Jacob
spoke at interfaith conferences organized by Al-Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt. Jacob has also
been a featured guest on the Aljazeera Channel show “Min Washington.”
Jacob has published articles in Islamic Horizons Magazine, The Daily Star of Beirut,
Lebanon, and an article appeared about him in The Arab News of Saudi Arabia. His “Letters
to the Editor” have been published in newspapers around the world, including The New York
Times, The Los Angeles Times, The International Herald Tribune, The Jordan Times, The Gulf
News, and El Pais.
In 1984, Jacob was a speech writer on interfaith affairs for Rev. Jesse Jackson during his
historic presidential campaign.
Jacob has been a leading voice in the American Jewish community for a just resolution of
the Israel-Palestine conflict. 1995, he led delegations of American peace activists that met with
Chairman Yassir Arafat in Gaza and King Hussein in Amman.
Jacob has a degree in “The History of Religions” from the University of California at Los
Angeles, and studied film and television at New York University’s Graduate School of Film.
José Antonio Hergueta, Executive Producer/Producer (www.mlk.es)
José Antonio Hergueta is a Spanish independent filmmaker and video-artist. He focus is
on creative documentaries, a field in which he has produced and directed numerous programs
and films.
Born in Malaga, José Antonio has lived in Madrid (from 1984 on), Maastricht (The
Netherlands, 1990), Glasgow (1992 and 1997) and São Paulo (Brazil, from 1994 to 1996). José
Antonio has developed his own career as a video artist and author of documentary films,
co-produced by Canal Plus France, Eurocreation, the Spanish Ministry of Culture and Canal
Satélite Digital. His video-art works and installations were exhibited at festivals, museums and
TV channels all over the world, such as the Spanish Nacional Art Gallery Reina Sofía (Madrid,
1992 and 1996), the Andalusian College of Architecture (Málaga, 1989), the Fundació La Caixa
(Barcelona, 1998-99, Gerona, 2000), and at international festivals such as Den Haag, Berlin,
Geneva, Sydney, Locarno, Bonn and Montbéliard, as well as many other locales.
In 1999, José Antonio returned to live in his hometown of Malaga and founded MLK, a
company dedicated to film production and cultural and educational projects, with an emphasis
on subjects of historical and archaeological interest. He has specialized in producing documentaries about the past from a very contemporary view. MLK is currently producing documentaries
for Canal Sur TV and other Spanish broadcasters, in co-production with European partners.
MLK’s international vision was realized in 2006 with the co-production of “Operación
Úrsula,” produced in association with German and Italian partners. “Operación Úrsula” (2006)
is about submarine warfare in Spanish Civil War, and specifically, the mystery of C-3, a missing
submarine of the Spanish Republican fleet, which was recently discovered on the ocean floor.
His most important documentaries are “La tierra de la madre” (The Land of the Mother,
1994), which treats the exile of the so-called ‘Children of Russia’ to the Soviet Union during
Spanish Civil War; “La Ciudad Mercante” (The Merchant City, 1997), a personal portrait of the
Scottish city of Glasgow; “Paseo por la ciudad púrpura” (A Walk Through the Purple City, 1998),
an educational program about the history of Mediterranean cities, starting with Malaga; and
“Andalucia,” a Spanish/French co-production, and MLK’s first fiction feature.
As a scriptwriter, José Antonio is the author of several documentary films such as
“Historia de la Televisión” (A History of Television) that was shown at the World Expo (Sevilla,
1992); or “La Sordoceguera” (The Deafblindness), produced by ONCE, the Spanish Foundation
for Blinds (1992); “La ruta del sueño” (The Dream Road) and “La Máquina del Tiempo” (The
Time Machine, co-written by Regina Álvarez), both part of the series about the Spanish avantgarde movement of the twenties embracing Lorca, Dali or Buñuel, so called Generation 27, produced by Docus Andalucía (2007) for the Andalusian TV Channel Canal Sur TV and the Spanish
and Andalusian Ministry of Culture; and “Tifariti, Los hijos de las nubes” (Tifariti, Children of
the Skies, 2008), co-written by Jesús Cano.
José Antonio is a founding member of professional associations Docus Andalucia and
PECAA (Plataforma de Empresarios y Creadores del Audiovisual Andaluz), an organization
of independent film producers in Southern Spain, of which he is president, and associated to
FAPAE, the national federation of film producers in Spain. He is also a member of Eurodoc
network.
Joseph V. Montville, Executive Producer
Joseph V. Montville was a U.S. Foreign Service Officer for over 25 years. He served in
Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco and numerous positions in Washington, DC at the Department of
State, including the Near East Division, the Office of Global Issues, the Bureau of Intelligence and
Research, and was Senior Consultant on Conflict Resolution at the Foreign Service Institute. He is
currently a Member of the International Council for Conflict Resolution at The Carter Center. He
is the editor of Conflict and Peacemaking in Multiethnic Societies (Lexington Books, 1989), and
the author of over one hundred scholarly and general articles on conflict resolution, psychology,
preventative diplomacy and international politics. Mr. Montville has received many honors over
the last two decades for his work in the field of conflict resolution. He is currently Director of the
Abrahamic Family Reunion project (http://abrahamicfamilyreunion.org).
Steven Montgomery, Associate Producer
Steven Montgomery has produced and directed the nationally-recognized documentaries
“Morocco: The Past and Present of Djemma el Fna” and “Hobie’s Heroes.” His award-winning
work has been televised on PBS, USA Network and Nickelodeon, and has been presented at New
York’s Museum of Modern Art. His magazine articles on documentary filmmaking have been
published internationally. He is vice-president of the Robert Flaherty Film Seminar. In addition
to his efforts as a filmmaker, he is a development consultant, and has helped to secure funding
for numerous New York City nonprofit organizations, including the New York Philharmonic,
Henry Street Settlement and Rosie’s Broadway Kids.
Leif Karpe, Cinematographer
Leif Karpe, born in Germany, has worked for over 10 years as a cameraman and director
for documentary films, specializing in intercultural projects. He has been a DP for international
films, TV productions, and music videos throughout Europe, the Arab world, India and Sri
Lanka. His work has appeared on ZDF, WDR, and ARTE. In 1994 he founded his own production
company Planet Pictures that focuses on cultural and environmental programs in developing
countries. His most recent film (2005) is “El Americano,” a documentary film he directed about
the young Orson Wells in Spain.
Martin Kayser-Landwehr, Editor (www.movingiris.de/martin/)
Martin Kayser-Landwehr is an editor of documentary films, television series and publicity
spots for broadcasters around the world, including BBC, ZDF, and ARTE. He works as a freelancer
for production companies as Lichtblick, Spiegel TV, MTV and Endemol.
Antonio Meliveo, Original Music Soundtrack (www.imdb.com/name/nm0577830)
Composer and film producer, Antonio Meliveo has composed music for theater, dance,
feature and short films, documentaries, TV series, and advertising. He has won recognition from
many international film festivals, and has been twice nominated for the Goya Awards, prizes of
Spain’s National Film Academy.
Marcel Khalifé, Additional Music (http://marcelkhalife.com/index.html)
Marcel Khalifé is one of the most famous musicians in the Arab world, and a “UNESCO
Artist for Peace.” Khalifé has composed soundtracks for many films, documentary and fiction. He
has also composed several purely instrumental works such as The Symphony of Return, Chants
of the East, Concerto Al Andalus- Suite for Oud and Orchestra. Marcel Khalifé’s compositions
have been performed by several orchestras, notably the Kiev Symphony Orchestra, the Academy
of Boulogne Billancourt Orchestra, The San Francisco Chamber Orchestra, the Orchestra of the
city of Tunis, and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.
Yuval Ron, Additional Music (http://yuvalronmusic.com)
World-music artist, composer, producer, educator and peace activist, Yuval Ron works
internationally in film, television, dance and theater. Among his many honors, he was invited
to perform for the Dalai Lama, for Pir Zia Iniyat Khan (Head of the Sufi International Order),
and has produced albums of Turkish master-musician Omar Faruk Tekbilek. In 2006, Yuval
won an Oscar for the musical film, West Bank Story, and in 2004 received the Los Angeles
Treasures Award. He is the recipient of prestigious grants from the National Endowment for the
Arts, American Composers Forum, California Council for the Humanities and the Rockefeller
Foundation, among more.
KATHARINA FEIL, Image Researcher
Katharina Feil was the Senior Manager of the Rare Books and Manuscripts Department
of Sotheby’s New York for seven years, and the Curator of Judaica at Yeshiva University Museum
for four years. She has a doctorate in European History and Jewish Studies from The Jewish
Theological Seminary of America and an MA in Theology from the University of Heidelburg,
Germany. She is fluent in English, German, Italian, French, and Hebrew.
PUBLIC SCREENINGS
April 24, 2010
World premiere, Amnesty International Human Rights Art Festival
Silver Spring, MD
May 3, 2010
Spanish-languagae premiere, City Hall, Cordoba, Spain
June 9, 2010
Fez Festival of Sacred Music, Fez, Morocco
July 4, 2010
Islamic Film Festival, National Convention of ISNA, Islamic Society of
North America, Chicago, IL
July 10, 2010
Barcelon Jewish Film Festival
October 6, 2010
New York University Symposium, “The Meaning of Averroes and
Maimonides for Our Times: How to Make the Mediterranean Space a
Community of Reason, Tolerance, Progress, and Prosperity” at the Juan
Carlos I Center.
October 9, 2010
University of Kentucky, Lexington, KT
PRODUCTION STILL PHOTOS
Cinematographer Leif Karpe filming
on location in the occupied West Bank:
Palestinian demonstrations against the
“Separation Barrier are confronted by
Israeli Army troops.
Director Jacob Bender with Foreign
Minister of Spain Miguel A. Moratinos, in
the latter’s office in Madrid. On the wall
behind them are portraits of Averroes and
Maimonides.
Cinematographer Leif Karpe filming on
location in Venice.
Director Jacob Bender examining a 800year-old manuscript by Maimonides, in his
own handwriting, at the Hebrew University
of Jerusalem, Israel..
Cinematographer Leif Karpe filming on
location at an abandoned Jewish cemetary
in Cairo, Egypt.
Director Jacob Bender interviewing Dr.
Mansur Escodero, the leader of Junta
Islamic, the largest Muslim organization in
Spain, at Almodovar, Spain..
DIRECTOR PHOTOS
“OUT OF CORDOBA” IN THE PRESS
The Middle East’s Leading English Daily (Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia)
Sunday, 15, December, 2002 (10, Shawwal, 1423)
TV Series to Show How Islam Led Europe Out of the Dark Ages
By Barbara Ferguson, Arab News Correspondent —
WASHINGTON, 15 December 2002 — “Reason and Revelation” is a planned documentary television series
that directly resulted from the tragic events of 9/11, says Jacob Bender, the director. “It is both an artistic response,
and a way to address the unfortunate anti-Muslim and anti-Arab stereotypes that flooded the American media in the
months following the attacks.”
A producer and director for American and international television documentaries, Bender said his film will
focus on the cross-pollination that took place in the Middle Ages between Judaism, Christianity and Islam; which
he hopes will help “educate the American population about the ideals and values that Muslims, Jews and Christians
share in common.”
The three men who are profiled in “Reason and Revelation” are three of the most influential thinkers of Western
Civilization: Ibn-Rushd (Averroes) the Muslim, Maimonides the Jew, and Thomas Aquinas the Christian, he said.
The significance of these men is not lost in time. “The message of these three faiths is the sacredness of all
human beings, and to denigrate one of these three Abrahamic faiths is to denigrate all of them.
“Contrary to the bigoted proclamations of Rev. Pat Robertson, who said Islam is intrinsically a religion of
violence; Andalusia, in medieval Spain, was an oasis of tolerance in the European Dark Ages, when Paris and
London were but small, backward villages.
“The city of Cordoba, birthplace of both Ibn-Rushd and Maimonides, was the most advanced city on the
European continent. It had 400 libraries and street lighting — centuries before it was known elsewhere.”
It was through Islamic civilization that all the classical knowledge of ancient Greece, science, philosophy,
math, astronomy, medicine, in addition to poetics, was saved and made available to the West by Arabic speaking
intellectuals, he said.
Bender’s underlying theme in “Reason and Revelation” is to show that each man displayed considerable
intellectual courage in advocating reason and learning, rather than superstition, as a basis for the religious life.
“Reason and Revelation” is a three-part documentary film for television that Bender envisions will be shown
on American television, and will be distributed to educational institutions, mosques, churches and synagogues
throughout North America.
“As both as an American and a Jew, I am convinced that our world cries out for better understanding between
all people, and particularly Islam and its manifest tolerance for those referred to as ‘People of the Book.’ Islam refers
to all of us as the children of Abraham, and part of the obligation within all religions is to create and work towards a
more just world and to counter stereotypes, prejudice and racism wherever we find it.
“As one of many American Jews who have long disagreed with official Israeli policy and have always supported
the right of the Palestinians to their own independent state, it is my hope that Arabs and Muslims, both in North
America and the Middle East, will know that there are Jews like myself who are both working in favor of a just and
lasting peace in the Middle East and also to improve relations between the three Abrahamic faiths.”
Asked if he has encountered resistance for support of the film, Bender said the film has generated tremendous
amount of support from Muslim, Christian and Jewish scholars in North America; “primarily because Ibn-Rushd,
Maimonides, and Aquinas are still so important, literally, to millions of believers around the world.”
“By describing the story of these three men in American society, I hope people will learn something they
previously didn’t know. In this case, the sharing that took place in the Middle Ages, and the degree that we are in debt
to the genius of Islamic civilization,” he said.
— Jacob Bender, director of “Reason and Revelation,” can be reached by email: [email protected].
http://archive.gulfnews.com/articles/07/08/25/10148912.htm
Film Traces historical coexistence of faiths
08/25/2007 11:25 PM | By Barbara Bibbo’, Correspondent
Doha: A new American documentary film challenging the theory of the clash of civilisations and promoting MuslimJewish dialogue will be shown in the region soon.
Co-financed by religious and interfaith foundations from the United States to Saudi Arabia, Out of Cordoba brings to
light the reach of exchange that took place between Judaism, Christianity and Islam in the Middle Ages by exploring
the lives and works of Muslim philosopher Ibn Rush, best known in the West as Averroes, and his Jewish counterpart
Moses Maymonides.
Averroes and Maymonides, two of the greatest thinkers of the 12th century, were both born in Spain and focused
their work on harmonising science with the religions. Both were condemned by the fundamentalists within their own
communities.
Jacob Bender, a New York-based media producer and director of Out of Cordoba, spoke of his project on the sidelines
of the Fifth Interfaith Conference recently held in Doha.
Myth and reality
“After 9/11 I felt an urge to respond to the attacks as well as to the growing evidence of Islamophobia and attacks
upon Muslims with a film that would talk about the coexistence between Judaism, Christianity and Islam,” Bender
told Gulf News.
“Now that in the West some people talk of the clash of civilisations and argue that the London, Madrid and New
York attacks were the manifestations of a millennium-long conflict between the West and Islam, I believe there is a
need for a different voice that would show that this idea has no basis in the actual history that was lived by Muslims,
Christians and Jews for hundreds of years.”
Bender, a Jewish interfaith activist, highlights in his documentary how the three religions at the time of Averroes and
Maymonides shared medical knowledge, astronomy, mathematics, history and most of all of religion.
“Maymonides said we should accept the truth from whatever source we can find it. When we read his and Averroes’
works today we can conclude that truth does not reside only in one people or in one tradition. They teach us that to
be in touch with the divine we need to be open to modern knowledge as well as to our and others’ religions.”
The documentary has attracted interest of many foundations and from Christian, Muslims and Jewish organisations
across the world.The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Spain is among the major founders, but financial support has
recently arrived from the Kingdom Foundation of Prince Al Walid Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud in Saudi Arabia.
Bender is currently completing the filming and the documentary is likely to be distributed in the Gulf region in
2008.
Bender said it took five years to see the project come to life.
“Some people did not believe in it, they said looking at two philosophers, who lived 800 years ago, was too intellectual
an operation for a general consumption. But others saw the need for a film that would talk about the historical sharing
between the three different traditions.”
Asked how he judged the way a section of US movie industry has portrayed Arabs and Muslims over the years, he
said negative stereotypes about the Muslim in some US movies are the result of ignorance.
“American society has always been quite isolated, not wanting to know about the rest of the world. Secondly,
American popular cultures always needed ... an enemy to confront with.
“First it was the Native Americans, [then] Germans in World War I, and later on the communists. In recent years
people in the United States looked to justify the huge ... military budget by finding a new enemy in the Arab and
Muslim world. The 9/11 and Al Qaida presented them with an opportunity to say that Islam is an enemy of the
West.”
ANDALUCÍA - CÓRDOBA - CULTURA
Diputación acoge el estreno mundial de ‘Los
sabios de Córdoba’, documental sobre Averroes y
Maimónides
CÓRDOBA, 3 May. (EUROPA PRESS) El Palacio de la Merced, sede de la Diputación de Córdoba, ha acogido hoy el estreno mundial de la coproducción
hispano-estadounidense ‘Los sabios de Córdoba: Averroes y Maimónides en su tiempo y el nuestro’, documental
dirigido por el norteamericano Jacob Bender y producida por la malagueña MLK Producciones, con apoyo de
organismos de varios países.
Según explicó hoy en rueda de prensa la delegada de Turismo de la Diputación, María José Montes, ‘Los sabios
de Córdoba’ es un viaje que propone una investigación desde Nueva York (Estados Unidos( hasta Jerusalén (Israel),
pasando por España, Marruecos, París (Francia), Berlín (Alemania), Qatar o El Cairo (Egipto), en un recorrido que
busca trazos del diálogo y la convivencia que judíos, cristianos y musulmanes habrían vivido en condiciones de
respeto y tolerancia.
En esta búsqueda, la cinta sigue los pasos de dos genios, Maimónides y Averroes, ambos nacidos en la Córdoba
andalusí y que, cada uno desde su fe, tuvieron el valor de intentar armonizar credo y ciencia, razón y revelación.
A este respecto, Montes señaló que el documental “usa como brújula el pensamiento de dos figuras de
importancia mundial, el musulmán Averroes y el judío Maimónides, dos de los pensadores que más nos identifican
en la herencia histórica que sitúa a Córdoba como crisol de culturas y puente de civilizaciones entre Oriente y
Occidente”.
Del mismo modo, Montes opinó que esta película enriquece el proyecto de la Capitalidad Cultural y es “un fiel
exponente de la utilidad de la Córdoba Film Commission”, cuya creación promovió la Diputación en 2005 “mo
apuesta por la promoción audiovisual de la provincia”.
EL DIRECTOR
Por su parte, el director de la película, Jacob Benders, recordó que la producción tiene su origen en la oscuridad
del 11 de septiembre de 2001. Según Benders, mucha gente utilizó los ataques del 11-S como justificación para
la guerra, pero para otros muchos americanos no sólo no tenía sentido sino que, además, había una razón en el
pasado para pensar en positivo y eran Córdoba y Andalucía.
Benders detalló que ha sido un viaje de nueve años y ha resultado posible gracias a la colaboración de judíos,
cristianos y musulmanes de todo el mundo, además de la de instituciones y organismos de todo el mundo y del
Gobierno de España.
Se trata de una película documental dirigida al gran público y que navega entre el género histórico, la actualidad,
el mundo de las ideas, la religión y la política. Con un tratamiento actual y dinámico, cuenta con la colaboración de
artistas y técnicos internacionales, como la banda sonora, que mezcla temas del libanés Marcel Khalifé y del judío
Yuval Ron, con la música original de Antonio Meliveo, autor de algunas de las mejores bandas sonoras del cine
español.
Jacob Bender, judío norteamericano, destaca no sólo por su experiencia como cineasta y realizador, sino que
goza de una importante trayectoria a nivel mundial como activista por la paz y el diálogo interreligioso.
La película cuenta, entre otras, con las colaboraciones de la Diputación de Córdoba, la Fundación Tres Culturas
del Mediterráneo, la Casa Sefarad-Israel, el Ayuntamiento de Córdoba, Canal Sur Televisión y la Empresa Pública
de Gestión de Programas Culturales, dependiente de la Junta de Andalucía. Además, esta coproducción hispanonorteamericana cuenta con el respaldo de organismos e instituciones públicas de todo el mundo y con el apoyo del
Plan Nacional para la Alianza de Civilizaciones.
© 2010 Europa Press. Está expresamente prohibida la redistribución y la redifusión de todo o parte de los servicios
de Europa Press sin su previo y expreso consentimiento.
MAJOR FUNDERS
Alwaleed bin Talal Foundation
Canal Sur TV, Spain
United States Institute of Peace
William and Mary Greve Foundation
Carnegie Corporation of New York
Sabell Bender Trust
International Institute of Islamic Thought
Empresa Pública de Gestión de Programas Culturales, Spain
Consejería de Cultura, Junta de Andalucía, Spain
Ayuntamiento de Córdoba, Spain
Diputación Provincial de Córdoba, Spain
Fundación Tres Culturas del Mediterráneo, Spain
Casa Sefarad-Israel of the Foreign Ministry of Spain
Jewish Communal Fund of New York
Owsley Brown Charitable Foundation
Stanely Sheinbaum Trust
Islamic Society of North America
Hebrew Union College
ADVISORY BOARD
Akbar S. Ahmed, Professor of Islamic Studies, American University.
Karen Armstrong, author.
Michael Barry, Professor of Near Eastern Studies, Princeton University.
David B. Burrell, C.S.C., Professor of Philosophy and Theology, University of Notre Dame.
Charles Butterworth, Professor of Islamic Philosophy, University of Maryland.
Mark R. Cohen, Professor of Near Eastern Studies, Princeton University.
Jacob I. Dienstag, Librarian Emeritus, Yeshiva University.
John L. Esposito, Director, Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, Georgetown
University.
Majid Fahkry, Professor of Islamic Philosophy, George Washington University.
Reuven Firestone, Professor of Medieval Judaism and Islam, Hebrew Union College.
Lenn Goodman, Professor of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Vanderbilt University.
Wael B. Hallaq, Professor of Islamic Law, McGill University.
Joel Kraemer, Professor of Jewish Studies, University of Chicago Divinity School.
Joseph W. Koterski, S.J., Philosophy Department Chairman, Fordham University.
Oliver Leaman, Professor of Judaic Studies, University of Kentucky.
Rev. Ian Markham, Dean and Professor of Theology and Ethics, Hartford Seminary.
Rev. Francis Martin, Pope John Paul II Cultural Center, Washington, DC.
J. Rolando Matalon, Senior Rabbi, Congregation B’nai Jeshurun, NYC.
María Rosa Menocal, Professor of Spanish, Yale University.
Richard Murphy, former US Assistant Secretary of State; former US Ambassador to Saudi
Arabia.
Seyyed Hossein Nasr, University Professor of Islamic Studies, George Washington
University.
F. E. Peters, Professor of Religion, New York University,
Feisal Abdul Rauf, President, American Sufi Muslim Association.
Richard Rubenstein, Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution, George Mason
University.
Dr. Muzammil Siddiqi, Fidq Council of North America.
Robert Stall, MD, Maimonides Medical Society of NY.
Dr. Sayyid Syeed, Islamic Society of North America.
Dr. William Vendley, World Conference on Religion and Peace.
ENDORSEMENTS
“Out of Cordoba” updates us on the thought of Averroes and Maimonides and encourages us
to reflect on the past with the goal of broadening our respect and tolerance as we face the
challenges of the 21st Century.
Miguel Angel Moratinos, Foreign Minister of Spain
“Out of Cordoba” will help Americans think of their religious traditions as consistent with
democratic values, science, tolerance, and human rights. We urge you to support this crucially important film project. For our part, we commit to helping to distribute “Out of
Cordoba” to our member communities throughout North America.
National Council of Churches of Christ USA; National Synagogue Council; Islamic
Society of North America
“Out of Cordoba” will be a very useful and powerful means of conveying the message of
understanding, love and peace among different cultures, religions, and nations. The film will
contribute to solving the problem of misunderstanding between the Islamic world and the
West.
Dr. Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, Secretary General, Organization of the Islamic Conference
“Out of Cordoba” has the power to recreate a world and bring it to the present. It will not
only offer a fresh perspective on the medieval period, but could by that very fact awaken us
to the potential of greater interfaith understanding in our world today, which we so desperately need.
Rev. David Burrell, C.S.C., Professor of Philosophy, University of Notre Dame
The proposal of Jacob Bender to portray the life and times of Averroës and Maimonides is
an undertaking of serious importance for our time and deserves our support. These two brilliant thinkers can serve as a model for those of us today who are supporting each other in the
efforts toward world peace.
Rev. Francis Martin, Pope John Paul II Cultural Center, Washington DC
Bender’s film has the potential to educate Americans about this extremely important subject,
thereby greatly contributing to interfaith understanding.
Steve Riskin, Program Officer, United States Institute of Peace, Washington DC
In a time of continuing religious conflict, with the dangers of militant religious extremism all
too apparent, “Out of Cordoba” will demonstrate not only the symbiotic relationship between
Christianity, Judaism, and Islam, but as well the possibility of a spirituality of tolerance.
Rabbi Michael Paley, Jewish Federation of New York

PRESS KIT - Out of Cordoba

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