Electro Chaabi

„Electro Chaabi“ ist eine Mischung aus traditionellen, arabischen Rythmen und elektronischen Beats, gepaart mit Rap-Elementen und Synthesizer-Effekten. Geboren in Kairos Slums hat sich diese ursprünglich zu Hochzeiten und anderen Feierlichkeiten gespielte Festmusik mittlerweile einen festen Platz bei den ägyptischen Jugendlichen gesichert. In ihren Texten verarbeiten die Musiker neben Banalitäten auch den Frust über die Regierung und provozieren mit Obszönitäten, die in der arabischen Gesellschaft als Tabu gelten. Die Regisseurin begleitet mit ihrer Kamera bekannte DJs zu den wilden und ausgelassenen Parties und gibt Einblicke in Kairos Jugendkultur.

A new craze is taking over the Arab world’s most populous nation: Electro Chaabi. Inspired by the down-and-dirty music played at street parties and weddings, this new populist dance form combines the punk spirit with a hip hop attitude set against a furious cascade of drums, bass and electronic vocals. Meddeb's documentary focuses on some ghetto stars, from Islam Chipsy reinventing psychedelic trance to the revolutionary anthems of MC Sadat and Amr Haha. Unheard during the time of Mubarak, they upload their music on YouTube to make their voices heard throughout Egypt and beyond, with their lyrics often laughing at their misery and oppressors coexisting at times uneasily with the also widely broadcast words of religious preachers.

Director's Biography
Hind Meddeb, born 1978, is a Franco-Tunisian documentary filmmaker, journalist and television reporter. She studied politics and philosophy before becoming a journalist for French radio and television, constantly traveling between France, North Africa and the Middle East for her work. Hind’s first award-winning film was DE CASA AU PARADIS (Casablanca: One-Way Ticket to Paradise, 2008, doc), which explored the tragedy of the 2003 Casablanca bombings. ELECTRO CHAABI (2013, doc) is her second film. It premiered at London Film Festival 2013.
European Panorama Documentary 2014
Hind Meddeb
Frankreich / Ägypten 2013
color
77 Minuten
OmeU
Drehbuch Hind Meddeb
Kamera Hind Meddeb, Omar Khodier
Schnitt Gilles Bovon
Ton/Sounddesign Salma Barouni
Produktion
IPS 4 Rue de Nevers 75006 Paris France T / F +33 9 52 88 27 47 karimboutrosghali@free.fr www.int.prod.services.tripod.com Koproduktion / Co-Production Studio Masr (EG)