The RedCut Collective is composed of independent filmmakers whose aim is to strengthen the bonds with and among their peers in the Middle East by relying on shared experiences and knowledge. The RedCut Collective hopes to transcend geographical borders and create a space for convergence among independent filmmakers, particularly those in and from the Middle East. This collective aims to explore novel and creative forms of expression and break free from the capitalist conventions that dominate the film industry, in production, distribution, and audience engagement.
The censorship and other ever tightening restrictions imposed by oppressive and totalitarian regimes, on the one hand, and the influence of global commercial interests, on the other, have for long dimmed the prospects of independent filmmaking in many parts of the Middle East. The RedCut Collective rejects systematic control and various forms of censorship and self-censorship, seeking to provide a platform for independent filmmakers to freely express their ideas. RedCut’s alternative path involves rediscovering, understanding, and engaging with what can only be called a truly collective independent cinema. The focus in this path will be on independent filmmakers who have fought against class, gender, and ethnic oppression, consistently working to expose and challenge structures of suppression and dominance.
Inspired by struggles for the liberation of women, sexual and gender minorities, and oppressed nations in the Middle East, and in connection with the progressive and widespread “Woman Life Freedom” uprising in Kurdistan and Iran, one of the goals of the collective is to strive for the convergence of knowledge and action and to stand in solidarity with each other. RedCut will endeavor to strengthen social resistance and the struggle against the tyranny and dominance of capitalist conventions in the film and art communities of the Middle East, promoting transnational solidarity within the framework and in the spirit of a collective independent cinema.
