1992
87' – Video – Color – Italy, France
Metamorphosis of a Melody
A play directed and filmed in Gibellina, Sicily, in July of 1992.
It is an adaptation of a text by Flavius Josephus “The War of the Jews”, and of “The Dead Sea Scrolls”.
“The War of the Jews” is an account of the destruction of Jewish sovereignty and of the first Jewish city, Jerusalem, in 70 ad. The Masada story is about the suicide of 700 men, women, and children. They decided to die rather than become slaves of Rome. After Jerusalem had fallen to the Romans, Masada continued the rebellion. The Romans had already destroyed most of the country and exiled massive parts of the population, but they were obsessed with this tiny country, Judea, and the Roman general went back just to conquer this insignificant mountain in the middle of nowhere. This disproportion in the Masada story made it an excellent myth for the new state to grab. Modernity recycles many of the old myths and the Masada mythology is one of them. It had been totally forgotten for centuries. The Diaspora was not interested in a suicidal mythology.
Amos Gitai, in Yann Lardeau: Les Films d’Amos Gitai, unpublished
CREDITS
Texts Flavius Josephus, Rainer Maria Rilke, Oscar Wilde, the Bible, Hans Magnus Enzensberger
Adaptation Rivka Markovitzky-Gitai
Cinematography Peter Missoten, Yürgen Persun, Mathias Vanbuel
Editing Peter Missoten
Sound Michel Boermans, Hans Helewaut
Lighting Enrico Bagnoli
Music Simon Stockhausen, Markus Stockhausen
Costumes Ophrah Shemesh
With Hanna Schygulla, Samuel Fuller, Enrico Lo Verso, Jérôme Koenig, Ophrah Shemesh, Masha Itkina, Mariella Lo Sardo, Alberto Scala, Roberto Burgio, Paola Pace
Production Agav Films, Télé Lyon Métropole, CNC (France), Commune di Gibellina (Italy), Université Catholique de Louvain (Belgium)
Line producers Laurent Truchot, Eléonore Feneux
A play directed and filmed in Gibellina, Sicily, in July of 1992.
It is an adaptation of a text by Flavius Josephus “The War of the Jews”, and of “The Dead Sea Scrolls”.
“The War of the Jews” is an account of the destruction of Jewish sovereignty and of the first Jewish city, Jerusalem, in 70 ad. The Masada story is about the suicide of 700 men, women, and children. They decided to die rather than become slaves of Rome. After Jerusalem had fallen to the Romans, Masada continued the rebellion. The Romans had already destroyed most of the country and exiled massive parts of the population, but they were obsessed with this tiny country, Judea, and the Roman general went back just to conquer this insignificant mountain in the middle of nowhere. This disproportion in the Masada story made it an excellent myth for the new state to grab. Modernity recycles many of the old myths and the Masada mythology is one of them. It had been totally forgotten for centuries. The Diaspora was not interested in a suicidal mythology.
Amos Gitai, in Yann Lardeau: Les Films d’Amos Gitai, unpublished
CREDITS
Texts Flavius Josephus, Rainer Maria Rilke, Oscar Wilde, the Bible, Hans Magnus Enzensberger
Adaptation Rivka Markovitzky-Gitai
Cinematography Peter Missoten, Yürgen Persun, Mathias Vanbuel
Editing Peter Missoten
Sound Michel Boermans, Hans Helewaut
Lighting Enrico Bagnoli
Music Simon Stockhausen, Markus Stockhausen
Costumes Ophrah Shemesh
With Hanna Schygulla, Samuel Fuller, Enrico Lo Verso, Jérôme Koenig, Ophrah Shemesh, Masha Itkina, Mariella Lo Sardo, Alberto Scala, Roberto Burgio, Paola Pace
Production Agav Films, Télé Lyon Métropole, CNC (France), Commune di Gibellina (Italy), Université Catholique de Louvain (Belgium)
Line producers Laurent Truchot, Eléonore Feneux
SALES / DISTRIBUTION
AGAV FILMS
6, cour Berard. 75004 Paris – France
+33 (0)1 42 40 48 45
agav@amosgitai.com
SALES / DISTRIBUTION
AGAV FILMS
6, cour Berard. 75004 Paris – France
+33 (0)1 42 40 48 45
agav@amosgitai.com
