Egypt

Egypt is a film which is almost silent. A film about deaf mutes, or rather about their sign language, a language which, like the ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, links the symbolic terminology of words with the mimetic and analogous representations of graphic gestures. Sober black and white scenes show how "shark", "widow", "Marilyn Monroe", a James bond sequence, a Viennese song or the account of a treasure hunt undertake by two holidaymakers in Egypt look in the sign language. It is a very modest indication, an introduction to an unfamiliar way of experiencing the world, where one sees the sounds without hearing them. (Drehli Robnik)


 


Kathrin Resetarits has made a very special silent film which consists of rich gestured stories in the sign language of the deaf and dumb. The translation is effected by written words, feature film sequences, voices in off and music. Here there are no extensive explanations, no "relevance justifications" simply something recorded, a successful reminiscence on the expressivity of early cinema. Something which is simultaneously commonplace and, for most people, foreign. Thus Resetarits relativizes the implicit agreement that documentaries are first and foremost concerned with the tristesse of human existence. (Isabella Reicher)

Orig. Title
Ägypten
Year
1997
Country
Austria
Duration
10 min
Category
Documentary
Orig. Language
German
Subtitles
English, french
Downloads
Egypt (Image)
Egypt (Image)
Credits
Director
Kathrin Resetarits
Script
Kathrin Resetarits
Cinematography
Kathrin Resetarits, Gundula Daxecker
Editing
Kathrin Resetarits
Production
Kathrin Resetarits
Actor/Actress
Humbert Spitzer, Helene Jarmer, Schüler des B.I.G., Mitglieder der WITAF
Assistant Director
Jessica Hausner
Available Formats
16 mm (Original Format)
Aspect Ratio
1:1,37
Sound Format
mono
Frame Rate
24 fps
Color Format
b/w
16 mm (Distribution Copy)
Aspect Ratio
1:1,37
Sound Format
mono
Frame Rate
24 fps
Color Format
b/w
Digital File (prores, h264)
Festivals (Selection)
1997
Wien - StudentInnenfilmfestival (None)
Wien - Viennale - Int. Filmfestwochen
Amascultura - Encontros Internacionais de Cinema Documental
Kassel - Dokumentarfilm- & Videofest
1998
Austin - Cinetexas - Int. short film&video&new media festival
Köln - feminale - Int. Frauenfilmfestival
Neubrandenburg - dokumentART
Denver - Int. Film Festival
Uppsala - Int. Short Film Festival
Madrid - Semana de Cine Experimental
Tel Aviv - Int. Studentenfilmfestival
Helsinki - MUU Media Festival
Leeuwarden/NL - Noordelijk Film Festival
Stuttgart - Filmwinter, Expanded Media Festival
Créteil - Festival Int. de Film de Femmes
Graz - Diagonale, Festival des österreichischen Films (Preis für Innovatives Kino)
Nyon - visions du réel - Festival Int. du Cinéma Documentaire
San Francisco - Golden Gate Award Int. Film Festival (Golden Spire)
Kiew - Molodist Int. Film Festival
Humboldt - Int. Film Festival (Best Documentary)
Angers - Premiers Plans
Winterthur - Kurzfilmtage
Hamburg - Int. Kurzfilm-Festival & No Budget
Teplice - Int. Art Film Festival Trencianske
Sao Paulo - Short Film Festival
New York - Expo of Short Film & Video (First Prize for Experimental)
Oberhausen - Int. Kurzfilmtage
Aix-en-Provence - Festival Tous Courts
Olympia - Film Festival
Clermont-Ferrand - Festival de Court Metrage
1999
Ludwigsburg - Filmfest
Wien - StudentInnenfilmfestival
Windsor - Media City
Onion City - Film Festival Chicago
Regensburg - Kurzfilmwoche
New York - WOW Cafe Women's Film & Video Festival
Ankara - Int. Film Festival
New Jersey - Black Maria Festival (Directors Choice)
Viareggio - Europa Cinema & TV Film Festival
Solothurn - Filmtage
Ann Arbor - Film Festival (Best Sound Design)
Istanbul - Int. Short Film Festival