The mission of North and East Syria’s Rojava Film Commune (RFC) is to “create the visual language of libertarian life”, according to Numan Yiğit, an RFC Co-Chair.
“We are the filmmakers of Democratic Modernity. We run a cinema that respects the paradigm of democracy, ecology, and women’s liberation,” Yiğit said, adding that cinema is the “most powerful” visual art form for cultural and linguistic expression.
Turkey ramped up airstrikes on the Kurdish-led de facto autonomous region in October of last year. In December, Mensûr Kerîmîyan, a film director, was killed during a bombardment. Yiğit described Kerîmîyan as an “artist for the people”, who worked on esteemed productions including ‘Sengal’, ‘Evîna Kurd’, and the major film ‘Kobane’, a raw and educational journey into the Kurdish women-led defence against an ISIS siege of the northern Syrian town in 2014.
Many of RFC’s members and friends have been killed in Turkish airstrikes. According to Yiğit: “Nine of our friends were martyred in the attacks that took place between December 24—29, all of them civilians.” Kerîmîyan, originating from the Kurdish region of Iran known as Rojhilat, was targeted for his Kurdish identity and political ideas, Yiğit said.
Kerîmîyan’s stance “draws a line through the next generation of filmmakers. All revolutions have turned to art to express themselves,” Yiğit added.
The commune will continue its work in the face of adversity, oppression, and direct attacks of the Turkish state, Yiğit concluded. He said, no matter the cost, “the defence, appropriation and struggle in cinema will continue.”
Cinema Galleries in Brussels, Belgium is set to host an evening of films by the Rojava Film Commune, the Kezi Collective and the Palestine Cinema Institute, on 30 April at 6.30 pm.
