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Farouq Abul-Aziz (born July 24, 1946, at El-Mahalla El-Kubra, in the heartland of Egypt's Nile Delta) is a TV presenter, interviewer, writer, producer and director. Farouq Abdul-Aziz belongs to the second generation of Egyptian film critics. A few critics worked in a fashion deeply rooted in the literary criticism of the 20th century.
Farouk (aka Farouq) Abdul-Aziz Mahmoud Abdullah | |
|---|---|
_Abdul-Aziz_Photo_Credit_-_NCAL_Kuwait.png) Photo Credit: NCAL-Kuwait | |
| Born | July 24, 1946 Al Mahallah Al Kubra, Gharbiah Governorate, in the heartland of the Nile Delta, Egypt |
| Citizenship | Egypt |
| Education | Cairo University, BA English Language & Literature, Faculty of Literature, 1968, Egypt |
| Occupation(s) | Film director, film producer, interviewer, TV presenter, screenwriter |
| Spouse | Nadia Lutfy Dawwi (since 1988) |
| Children | Omar Farouq Abdul-Aziz Mahmoud Abdullah (born 1989) Khaled Farouq Abdul-Aziz Mahmoud Abdullah (born 1994) |
| Website | www.farouqoncinema.com
www.bucaillelegacy.com www.manaracom.com |
Biography edit
Farouk Abdul-Aziz’s career began in 1966 as a film and art critic on Egyptian radio. Before obtaining his Bachelor's of Arts in English literature from the Faculty of Arts at Cairo University, he was involved in writing comic strips for Disney's Middle East Arabic language franchise; the Mickey Mouse Weekly where he published his noted one-year-long series The Gates of Cairo (1967–1968).
Fresh from college in 1968, Farouk worked at Cairo's monthly Al Majallah ('The Magazine') to publish his Arabic translation of Paul Klee's lecture in book form on Modern Art. Farouk worked freelance (1968–1977) covering arts activities in the Cairo evening newspaper; the daily Al Messa ('The Evening'). That is where his second translation of Klee serially appeared; Paul Klee's rendition of the formative tools of creativity in shape and form; Pedagogical Sketchbook. In 1969, Al Majallah published Farouk's translation of 3 articles authored by Henry Moore, a writing rarity by the English landmark sculptor. Another English sculptor and painter; Hubert Dalwood was Farouk's guest in 1974 in an Egyptian Radio show as well as in live appearances in Cairo and Alexandria's Faculty of Fine Arts.
Early career (1968 – 1976) edit
Farouq focused on the school of Objective Criticism, the rules of which were laid down by poet and critic T. S. Eliot in the 1920s. From 1968 until 1974, Farouq, a committed art critic, moved between the various art disciplines and published his criticism in the Egyptian written press, radio, and television. In 1974, Farouq shifted his focus to film criticism.
Late 1970s and move to Kuwait edit
1976 saw a permanent move to Kuwait. During this time, Farouq worked non-stop and was featured in nearly every newspaper in the country, such as Al-Seyassah, Al-Watan, Al-Qabas, Arab Times, and Kuwait Times. Farouq spent the better part of two years (1978-1980) co-writing and producing the British documentary Vanessa Talks with Farouk Abdulaziz on the life and times of actress and frequently outspoken activist Vanessa Redgrave.
1980s edit
In the 1980s, Farouk created a documentary, produced in both English and Arabic, on the making of Lion of The Desert, the Hollywood blockbuster starring Anthony Quinn as Libyan resistance leader Omar al-Mukhtar. Farouq then produced the Arabic version of The Great National Parks of Europe, a 10-hour series produced by Telepol Suisse.
Between 1986 and 1987, his activity expanded to include co-writing and co-producing the International English-speaking version of the 18-hour Japanese documentary series The Silk Road - Part Two. The series was produced by NHK Television and later broadcast on almost all major international television networks.
Following the 1988 telecast of the Turkish language version of The Silk Road, the Turkish Ministry of Culture invited Farouq to produce a documentary about Turkey. The film, titled "Merhaba" (Welcome), was told from an Arab perspective and was primarily intended for an Arab audience. Merhaba aired on various Arab television networks throughout 1988 and 1989.
1990s edit
In the aftermath of the liberation of Kuwait from the Iraqi invasion in February 1991, Farouq produced documentaries chronicling life in Kuwait for several international television networks, including US’s NBC, and UK’s BBC. He also produced the Kuwait segment for the critically acclaimed film Baraka (1992).
The three years that followed saw Farouq serving as a development producer on a documentary series project for international broadcasters, including CBC in Canada. Farouq also branched out and acted as a Media Consultant on a number of projects, including the creation of international production companies and specialized television channels.
From 1997 through 2000, Farouq focused his energy on the writing and development of three children’s films for the International Cartoon and Animation Center (ICAC) based in Los Angeles, California. He also served as an artistic consultant to the aforementioned center.
Farouq continued doing film screenings, lectures and workshops, while also producing documentaries for offices affiliated with the Kuwaiti Amiri Diwan, namely, The Martyr’s Bureau and Secretary of Social Welfare and Development and The Social Development Office, both of which were focused on dealing with the human toll of the Iraqi invasion.
2000s edit
From 2004 until 2018, Farouq acted as a media consultant to several government agencies in the State of Kuwait.
In 2008, Farouq started studying the relationship between science and religion. More specifically, the scientific and historical references in the Qur’an. This study resulted, over a span of 15 years, in the production of about 500 short form films and a few one-hour documentaries on the subject, all of which were broadcast on Farouq's Youtube channel.
The channel is currently active and features an uninterrupted stream of short films, lectures, and archival material. The channel has received over 180,000 subscribers and 20 million views over a span of 10 years. Farouq’s diversified activities in many venues have attracted a lot of pan-Arab attention.[1][2]
2010s edit
From 2010 until 2012, Farouq spearheaded, produced and directed a feature length documentary on Paul Findley, the former US congressman and his relationship with the Palestinian issue. The film, Honorable Paul: He Who Dared to Speak Out, is currently in post-production.
Farouq published 5 books between 2016 and 2018. These books, released in both English and Arabic, further scrutinized the relationship between science and the Qur’an. These books include: Maurice and The Qur’an, Knitted by the Stars, and Who, 14 Centuries ago, Could’ve Known That?
For 2 years, starting from 2017, Farouq produced 6 documentaries chronicling his experience during the 7 months of the Iraqi occupation of Kuwait, as well as the liberation that followed.
In 2019 Farouq wrapped up the final draft of a script based on Alan Villiers’s book Sons of Sinbad (1940). The international docudrama project is designed to document the final chapters of the Kuwaiti sailing navigation.
2020s edit
From 2020-21, Farouq wrote, directed, and produced a series for Arab television networks titled "Al-Burhan" (Evidence). This show investigates a selection of scientific, historical, and rhetorical references in the Qur’an. Once again, through the framework of studying the relationship between science and religion.
In July 2023, Farouq began writing a new documentary series entitled "Life Before Life". The series, set for production and release in five languages in 2024, depicts the close affinity of contemporary Embryology with Qur’anic verses that describe, with amazing accuracy, the stages of human reproduction.
Farouq Abdul-Aziz has been a ubiquitous presence in the landscape of Arab media. He is frequently a staple of print media, a frequent guest on various television programs, radio shows recollecting stories from his 55-year work span.[3][4]
Children’s writer, then and now edit
Farouq Abdul-Aziz’s 55 year career has been characterized by a rare kind of diversity. Before graduating from Cairo University in 1968, where he studied English language and literature, Farouq wrote comics for Mickey, an Arabic language version of Disney’s popular comic strip. His Gates of Cairo series continued for one whole year. The experience of writing comics paid off 30 years later when the US based The International Cartoon and Animation Center ICAC commissioned him to write 3 feature length children’s films. He then produced for the Center the Arabic language version of The Knights of Virtue. The first of his 3 features, titled The Return of The Golden Queen, was released in 2000 in both English and Arabic.
Formative arts critic edit
In 1967, Farouq translated Paul Klee’s seminal book, On Modern Art. Farouq’s version was published in 1968, the year he graduated from university. The translation was published in Al-Magalla (The Magazine), one of the most important and culturally relevant Arab magazines of all time [5]. Farouq’s translation was immediately embraced in the art world and subsequently landed him a steady assignment as an art critic for Al-Massa’ (The Evening), a Cairo based newspaper. The job lasted from 1968 through 1977.
Al-Massa’, the only evening newspaper at that time, published Farouq’s translation of another Paul Klee book titled: Pedagogical Sketchbooks on its formative arts page. In 1969, Al-Magalla published another of Farouq’s translations, this time it was of three articles by the prominent English sculptor Henry Moore.[6] In 1974, another prominent sculptor, Hubert Dalwood was a guest on Farouq’s radio program Horizons of Art, which aired on Channel 2 of Cairo Radio. In 1987, Farouq returned to the formative arts with his translation of Salvador Dali’s Dali on Modern Art: The Cuckolds of Antiquated Modern Art; these translations were published serially in Al-Qabas (The Torch), a Kuwaiti newspaper.[7] In 2005, Farouq published a comprehensive study on the Egyptian painter Mahmoud Abdul Aa’ti in Al-Funoon (The Arts), a Kuwaiti monthly magazine. In 2009, Al-Funoon published another of Farouq’s studies, this time on The Prospects of Islamic Art Today.[8]
Radio edit
Farouk's contact with Egyptian Radio was initiated during the finale of his college undergraduate years. Again, it was the translation from English that helped him get through Program 2, a channel dedicated to presenting and discussing classical music, arts, theatre, film, international literature, and more. His Arabic translations of short stories by Katherine Mansfield, William Saroyan, and Henry James were aired (1967–1969); an effort that led to his employment, in 1974, by Egypt's Radio Authority to join Program 2 as a commentator on arts and film. Farouq had even shown an undercurrent skill in acting out Scott Fitzgerald in a Program 2 radio play written by Farouq.
Farouk returned to write and present film shows on Kuwait Radio (1999–2002) where his Cinema and the World and Comedian were widely received.
Press edit
Abdul-Aziz's contribution to film criticism, which turned out to be almost the mainstream drive of his career since 1974, started by publishing critiques of films produced by 'national cinemas' of the world including Soviet, Hungarian, Egyptian, and Arab marginal, as well as US independents. He contributed to editing a book on the Cine Nuevo of Brazil published by The Egyptian Film Critics' Association (EFCA) in 1975. Farouq's critique writings appeared almost regularly in Cairo Cine-Club's weekly Film Bulletin, the Al Massa daily; the Al Talia (The Avant-Garde) monthly art supplement, and aired on Program 2 Radio. A few articles found their way to get published in several Arabic periodicals. By 1977 Farouq had become the film critic for two Kuwait dailies; the Arabic language Al Seyassah ('Politics') and the English language Arab Times. In the following year he joined the Arabic language daily Al Watan ('Homeland') till 1983 and the English language daily The Kuwait Times until 1990. A 4-year stint with the Arabic language daily Al Qabas ('The Torch') followed Al Watan's engagement (1983–1987). He contributed to Britain's Arts & the Islamic World magazine, spring 1985 issue, an article on the status quo and history of media production in Kuwait that eventually appeared in a book published by Kuwait's Ministry of Information in 1986. Farouq's contribution to the pan-Arab popular monthly Al Arabi ('The Arab') and Al Funoon (Arts) of Kuwait, among others, has continued, although intermittently, for over 25 years.
Television edit
Farouk's TV debut took place when he shared the presentation of Egypt's weekly show Film Archive during the spring season of 1975. He later took over writing and presenting the show by himself. The show hosted many a film personality including the 'revolutionary' Cuban pioneering filmmaker Tomás Gotiérrez Alea and the head of the Institute of Cuban Cinema (ICAIC). The show had always boasted presenting avant-garde films from several national cinemas including Humberto Solas' Lucia and Alea's Memories of Underdevelopment from Cuba.
The Cine-Club show debuted on Kuwait TV in October 1979 featuring Fred Zinnemann's 1967 period piece A Man for All Seasons. The show, written/produced and presented by Farouq, had scored immediate popularity in Kuwait and adjacent regions in Southern Iraq and selected countries in the Persian Gulf region. Farouk's list of guests on the show included Vanessa Redgrave, and Anthony Quinn among many. The Cine-Club showcased cinemas that were virtually unheard of by the movie crowd in the Persian Gulf; Chinese, German, Swedish, Romanian, Soviet, Italian, and French. A select of Hollywood mainstream and independent productions were also introduced. The show kept airing for more than a decade (1979–1992) leaving an indelible impact through its methodical analysis and criticism. A revival of the show took place in 2001 to run for one year on Kuwait TV's free satellite channel.
Kuwait Cine Club edit
By the fall of 1976 Farouk's settlement in Kuwait marked a welcome resumption of his Egyptian career. The first assignment was to write and produce 3 documentaries in 2 years for the Kuwait Oil Company KOC. During that period Farouk was employed to run the newly founded Kuwait Cine-Club, the first nonprofit cinematic cultural organization to be founded in the Persian Gulf region, a tenure that lasted 16 years (1977–1992). The outcome of the KCC experience had been quite rewarding; the programs devised and executed by Farouk included the organization of more than 60 film festivals and events. National cinemas as well as US and British independents were introduced in the region and film personalities were invited including Anthony Quinn, Vanessa Redgrave, Mrinal Sen, Shadi Abdussalam, and Youssef Chahine.
The club's publications of periodicals and festival booklets had certainly helped diffuse film culture in the area as reflected in the Kuwait press and the club's membership rise. Farouk was invited by the Cine-Club's board of directors to become the club's advisor as advertised in several publications including the electronic newspaper Al Aan.
International Film Festival Juror edit
The Egyptian government's crash on the so-called 'leftist sympathies' by the mid-70s, had resulted in the closure of all 'suspected' publications, all of which were venues for Farouk's work. The hostile move led to the cancellation of Farouq's television and radio shows while he was participating in Baghdad's International Film Festival in Palestine in February 1976. Farouk, representing EFCA, was selected as a member of The Arab Film Critics' Circle's jury in this festival where he was interviewed at extreme length and in-depth by Moroccan writer Ahmad Al Medeini for the Al Moharrer (The Editor) daily published in May 1976.
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The interview was only the beginning in a series of domestic and international interviews, from Cairo to Kuwait, Baghdad to India, and Britain. Farouq's US press interviews include one conducted by Variety's Gordon Hitchens in July 1981 followed by another Variety feature by Hank Werba who supervised a dossier on TV & Cinema in the Persian Gulf region in February 1982. In 1984 a Los Angeles Times article on Gulf finance and movie making by Jean Brody featured Farouk Abdul-Aziz highlighting his role in raising awareness about cinematic culture. Foreign radio interviews include Voice of America of Washington DC in July 1981 and Radio Orient of Paris in 2009.
In April 1980 Farouq was invited to sit on the jury of the International Short Film Festival in Oberhausen, Germany. The Kurtzfilmtage showcased short features, cartoons as well as documentaries. The event echoed Farouk's juror role in a 1976 edition of Cairo's National Short Feature and Documentary Films' Festival. The jury roster is highlighted by several jury jobs as a representative of the Egyptian Film Critics Association at the International Federation of Film Critics FIPRESCI panel of the 1984, 1985, and 1987 editions of the Cannes Film Festival. In 1995 Farouk had also been invited to join the jury panel of the Ismailia International Short and Documentary Film Festival in Egypt.
Documentary production edit
Vanessa talks with Farouk Abdulaziz edit
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The third edition of Baghdad Film Festival on Palestine, held in March 1978, was highlighted by the participation of the political actress Vanessa Redgrave. Fresh from Southern Lebanon, she came to a highly politicized film event with Roy Battersby's powerful documentary The Palestinian featuring Vanessa in camps and mountains where the fighters were. Taken by the film's revolutionary output Farouk managed to interview her for Baghdad TV, followed by a press interview for Kuwait's Arab Times. The Arabic version of which has subsequently appeared in Kuwait's Arabic daily Al Sayassah (Politics). But winning the Best Supporting Actress Academy Award (Oscar) of 1978 for her outstanding performance of the title role in Fred Zinnemann's Julia, and the controversy that shrouded her nomination through the acceptance speech was the driving force behind going for a full-fledged documentary about Vanessa. Farouk pitched the project to Vanessa who set all elements in place; New Park to produce, Roy Battersby to helm and Chris Menges to shoot (later himself a filmmaker). With the completion of Farouq's script, the project got a head start with Farouq as the on-camera interviewer. Vanessa's talks with Farouk Abdulaziz[9] took almost 2 years in the making as Vanessa was busy shooting the CBS film Playing for Time. Father Sir Michael Redgrave gave a special King Lear appearance with Vanessa playing Cordelia in the one-hour documentary.
In her 1991 book Vanessa Redgrave; an Autobiography (Random House/New York) Vanessa talks, among other related incidents, about the circumstances that led to the production of her documentary with Farouk.
The Making Of Omar Mukhtar – Lion Of The Desert edit
In late 1979 Farouk was hired by US' Falcon International to write and produce a documentary on the making of the company's Hollywood major feature film; Lion of the Desert. The mega-million dollar movie was produced and directed by Mustapha Akkad, with an Academy Award winner cast and crew. Farouk wrote the script and conducted the interviews with Anthony Quinn, Rod Steiger, Oliver Reed, and Jack Hildyard in addition to the Producer/Director Akkad. Two original versions in Arabic and English came out upon the film's release in 1981.
NHK and other ventures edit
The liaison with NHK, Japanese TV started after the release of Farouk's production of the Arabic version of the Swiss production and sales consortium Telepool's The Great National Parks of Europe. Farouq was commissioned in 1987 to produce the international version of NHK's 18-hour The Silk Road. Farouk ended up co-writing the series (segments related to the Islamic world) and directing the English version for a worldwide release including England's ITV and Canada's History Channel.
The following year Farouk received yet another commissioning from Turkey's Ministry of Culture to write, produce, and direct the 35 minute documentary Merhaba, a visual rendition of Turkey's historical and cultural fresco.
The first Gulf War got Farouk involved in researching and producing stories to serve many a client including BBC, Channel 4, CBS, and NBC for a period of 7 months after the liberation of Kuwait in February 1991. In the same period, Farouq researched and produced the Kuwait segment of Mark Magidson's 70 mm production of Ron Fricke's film Baraka, a non-verbal feature film.
In the mid 90s, Farouk was busy developing and pitching his first feature film venture Love in Exile. The project was set for a co-production deal with the Irish production entity Meem Productions, with Farouq writing and helming. It was announced during the 1996 edition of the Cannes Film Festival in the 17 May Cannes issues of The Moving Picture and Screen International, but the project didn't take off.
Religion vs science edit
By April 2008, Farouk kicked off the production of two documentaries in two original versions exploring the interaction of Holy Scriptures with science; a job that took almost 2 years. Maurice and the Pharaoh and From Microcosm to Macrocosm were released in the spring of 2010. On January 10, 2011 'Maurice and the Pharaoh' and From Microcosm to Macrocosm were awarded the Sheikh Fahad Al Ahmad International Award for Charity for 'the distinguished creativity in sending a humanitarian message'. Both works received funding from Kuwait's Nasser Abdul-Mohsen Al Sa'eed Charitable Third.
A third documentary, Gates of Heaven, probing another area in this topic released in the spring of 2012. As further research in this area expanded, five more documentaries were produced and released in October 2012 on the Internet to a great reception. According to YouTube stats a record viewership number (given the scientific/cultural content of the material) is registered in a week's time 37504. The Great Split examines the Big Bang Theory; The Expanding Universe explores the acceleration of the process, The Hobok: The Cosmic Web gives a detailed account of the structure and texture of the universe as described in one Qur'anic word. Signs and Voices tells a few stories of a select group recounting the impact the scientific signs in the Qur'an had left on them. Finally In its Orbit explains how the concepts of Earth's roundness and just being a planet in the universe not at the center of it are singled out in the Qur'an 1400 years ago. The films are funded by Bodoor Charity of Kuwait.
Adviser edit
During the 80s Farouk had been advising Kuwait's ministers of information as to the implementation of foreign cultural protocols especially the film related events. He contributed to Britain's Arts & the Islamic World magazine, spring 1985 issue, an article on the status quo and history of media production in Kuwait that eventually appeared in a book published by Kuwait's ministry of Information in 1986. The advisory job was revived by the late 90s thru 2010. During that period Farouq advised several Kuwait government bodies on media affairs. For those bodies Farouk was commissioned to produce several documentaries and TV shows including Islamic Art; a View from the Bridge (1999), The Imprint of the Soul (2000), Love Letters (2000), Love thyself – 11 episodes (2001), The Last Prophet (2005), To Be or Not to Be (2006), Barirah (2007) and Islamic Art; Legacy of a Nation (2009).
References edit
- ^ "من هو الفاروق عبد العزيز - Farouk Abdul-Aziz". Arageek.com.
- ^ Kuwait, Alnahar. "فاروق عبد العزيز: «مرنبتاح» هو فرعون موسى". annaharkw.com.
- ^ Alqabas, Newspaper. "فاروق عبدالعزيز: هذا وطني أيضاً قدم فيلماً في مكتبة الكويت الوطنية". Alqabas. Alqabas.
- ^ "عن عرض "هذا وطني أيضًا"". Kuwait News Agency - Kuna.
- ^ "المجلة". https://archive.alsharekh.org.
{{cite web}}: External link in|website= - ^ ") ثلاث مقالات في النحت هنري مور سبتمبر 1969". https://archive.alsharekh.org.
{{cite web}}: External link in|website= - ^ "أرشيف القبس". https://www.alqabas.com.
{{cite web}}: External link in|website= - ^ "مجلة الفنون". New Kuwait.
- ^ "Vanessa Talks with Farouk Abdulaziz (1980)". BFI. Archived from the original on January 17, 2009. Retrieved February 26, 2018.