The University of Minnesota has long neglected the rigorous study of cinema, arguably the most important art form of the 20th century. The Department of Cultural Studies and Comparative Literature has come forward to fill this gap by establishing an undergraduate major in Studies of Cinema and Media Culture.

CSCL is in the process of building its curriculum in cinema studies. It has recently hired two faculty members specialized in the study of cinema and is expanding its course offerings to include national cinemas and the practice of filmmaking. These courses will fill a much needed demand by students who have been appealing for an expanded film course list for years.

As one of the new hires, and myself (Hisham Bizri) an Arab practicing filmmaker, I am working with my colleagues to establish such courses. As a first step, CSCL is now offering a course on Arab cinema taught by me. This is the first time such an important course is offered at the university. This places CSCL and the university in general a step ahead of everyone else because a course on Arab film has not been offered anywhere else on US campuses.

Therefore, with the introduction of Arab cinema into the curriculum, CSCL could and would become the premier department in the country for the study of national cinemas since we already offer courses in African, Indian, and Chinese cinemas.

At this time when the US is engaged in war in the Arab world, the study of Arab cinema becomes increasingly relevant for our students who stand to benefit enormously, not only from the contextual presentation of political and social aspects of Arab cinema, but also from the personal artistic representation within the work and from the aesthetic elements of work that is shaped by a living culture and a society that is the cradle of civilization, be it Jewish, Christian, or Islamic.

In order to highlight the study of Arab cinema at the university, we are putting together a conference that would address the history, politics, and art of Arab cinema. The conference will be a gathering of intellectuals, filmmakers, and curators from the US , Europe , and the Arab world to engage in a dialogue and evaluate 100 years or so of Arab cinema: its origins, influences, political events that shaped it, and how it has shaped and was shaped by the consciousness of the Arab people.

At this specific time when CSCL is building its film program, the conference will cement its reputation as the premier place for the study of national cinemas. The conference will also introduce our community to the rich possibilities of research in the field of national cinema, and bring an international attention to the film program that would attract world-class students to the university.

It is indeed an enormous opportunity for our community to participate in this conference and see the work of living filmmakers from the Arab world. It would bring both an intellectual and financial pay off for our growing program in film at CLA.

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