SAEED EFFENDI © Courtesy of Kameran Hosni
Saïd Effendi (Saeed Effendi): a nugget of Iraqi cinema at Cannes Classics
Saïd Effendi (Saeed Effendi) by Kameran Hosni is a classic from Iraqi heritage. Released in 1957, this film imbued with social realism, signified great hope in the rise of national cinema at the time. Cannes Classics presents it today in its restored version.
The story follows Saïd Effendi and his family who are evicted from their home by their landlord. After resettling in a popular neighborhood in Bagdad, they find it difficult to fit in, with tensions among the children jeopardizing relationships with their neighbors.
When it was released, Saïd Effendi (Saeed Effendi) marked a turning point for Iraqi cinema, which was emerging. Up until the 1940s, production was mainly focused on commercial films, often funded by Arab countries influenced by Lebanese and Egyptian models. But the opening of the Bagdad Studio in 1948 was a game-changer: it brought about technical methods and locally-trained staff. That’s when a new generation of Iraqi films emerged, which included Qui est responsable? (Who’s Responsible?) by Abdul Jabbar Wali and Saïd Effendi (Saeed Effendi) by Kameran Hosni.
Saïd Effendi (Saeed Effendi) is critically acclaimed for its realism and esthetic craftsmanship. Adapted from the short story La Dispute (Fight) by writer Edmond Sabri, it explores very concrete themes of unemployment, housing crisis, and social tensions, with an approach that reminisces about Italian neorealism of the 1950s. A true film industry emerged then in Iraq, including after the 1958 revolution.
However, in the early ’90s, with the Gulf War and then successive conflicts, production virtually came to a halt. The country’s film heritage was at stake due to lack of proper means to sustain it.
Over the past few years, there has been a commitment to preservation and restoration. It’s in this context that the Cinematheque Iraq was created in 2024, with the support of the INA [France’s National Audiovisual Institute]. The restoration of Saïd Effendi (Saeed Effendi), presented at Cannes Classics, is one of the first fruits of this labor.
