Koutaiba Al-Janabi is a
British-based
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
i
filmmaker,
director
Director may refer to:
Literature
* ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine
* ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker
* ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty
Music
* Director (band), an Irish rock band
* ''Di ...
and
photographer
A photographer (the Greek language, Greek φῶς (''phos''), meaning "light", and γραφή (''graphê''), meaning "drawing, writing", together meaning "drawing with light") is a person who makes photographs.
Duties and types of photographe ...
. He filmed ''Wasteland: Between London and Baghdad'' and the 2010 award-winning film, ''Leaving Baghdad''. He is a member of the Hungarian Society of Cinematographers.
Early life
Koutaiba was born in Baghdad. In
Budapest
Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...
, Hungary he studied photojournalism. His diploma project was about
Palestinian refugee camps
Camps are set up by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip to accommodate Palestinian refugees registered with UNRWA, who fled or were expelled during the 1948 Palestinian ...
in
Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...
. He attended the Budapest Academy of Drama and Cinema, qualifying as a cinematographer. He studied under
Lajos Koltai
Lajos Koltai, ASC, HSC, (born 2 April 1946) is a Hungarian cinematographer and film director best known for his work with legendary Hungarian director István Szabó, and Italian filmmaker Giuseppe Tornatore. He was nominated for an Academy ...
,
Oscar-nominated cinematographer defining the “Hungarian style” of lighting and composition. He worked in the Hungarian film and television industry and completed a PhD on the aesthetics and history of
Arab cinema at ELTE University before relocating to London. Koutaiba worked as a cinematographer on various films, produced and directed programmes for MBC and produced/directed short films and documentaries. He moved into screenwriting and directing feature films. His first feature film was ''Leaving Bagdhad''. Independently produced, the film was well received and won awards and was shown at festivals and screenings.
Raindance, the ''
British Film Institute
The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...
'', the Gulf Film Festival, festivals in Ghent, Monaco, Sweden, Thailand, Fiji, Spain, Germany and Iran selected ''Leaving Baghdad'' for their programmes.
The main themes in Al-Janabi's work are displacement, alienation and exile.
Al-Janabi's early films were published as a DVD under the title ''Stories of Passers Through.'' His photographic work is widely published and exhibited (''Foto Magazin Hungary'', ''
British Journal of Photography'',
''Black and White'' magazine). He produced two collections of his photographic work in his books ''Far from Baghdad'' and ''Foreign Light.''
Filmography
BIFA winner, Cinema for Peace nominee, Gulf Film Festival prize winner, Monaco Film Festival prize winner etc.
*''Leaving Baghdad'' Feature film (2010) Director/Writer - BIFA winner, Cinema for Peace nominee, Gulf Film Festival prize winner, Monaco Film Festival prize winner etc.
*''Wasteland: Between London and Baghdad'' (1998)
*''An English Sheikh and a Yemeni Gentleman'' Yemen (2000)
*''
Jiyan
''Jiyan'' (''Life'' in Kurdish language, Kurdish) is a 2001 film directed by the Kurdish director Jano Rosebiani.
Plot
Diyari, a Kurdish-American returns to his hometown of Halabja, to build an orphanage five years after the Halabja massacre, ch ...
'' (2002) Cinematographer.
*''Still Life'' (short)
*''The Train'' (short)
*''The Ever Restless man'' (portrait)
*''Against the Light'' (portrait)
*''No Man's Land'' (short)
*''Baghdadi Correspondent'' (documentary)
*''Seven Days with Gypsies''
*Jiyan
*''Emotional Backgammon''
*''Winter of Love''
Awards
* Raindance Award at the 14th
British Independent Film Awards (BIFAs)
* Best Cinematography Award of the XVII Hungarian Festival of Commercials
* Best Cinematography Award of the Independent Arabic Film Festival in 1999
* First Prize at the Gulf Film Festival
* Special Prize at the Monaco Charity Film Festival
See also
*
Iraqi art
*
List of Iraqi artists
References
External links
Official Site
Jaap Mees. (2003)
Review of ''Leaving Baghdad'' at takeonecff.com
* Koutaba Al-Janabi. official website. Accessed on 2005-12-18.
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Janabi, Koutaiba Al
Artists from Baghdad
British people of Iraqi descent
British male artists
Iraqi film directors
Iraqi photographers
Iraqi contemporary artists
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)