Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood launches cinema project to counter ‘corrupting influences’

A group of Muslim Brotherhood youths has decided to encourage the production of short films, in an attempt to reform society, the Islamic way.

The new project, titled “Cinema Ikhwan [Brotherhood]: upscale art has an address,” was created to deal with the concerns of ordinary Egyptians and counterbalance mainstream Egyptian cinema considered by religious circles to be too promiscuous and materialistic.

The videos are uploaded onto a Youtube channel, which already has 687 subscribers and nearly 300,000 views in total. The creators say they will soon start producing their own original films, rather than collecting films created by others.

“Art is not new to the Muslim Brotherhood but has been used since its inception,” Yasser Said, a media student and member of “Cinema Ikhwan,” told the independent Egyptian daily Al-Masry Al-Youm on Monday. “The Brotherhood strives to create a meaningful art form to serve as an alternative to the art which attempts to corrupt our culture and customs.”

Another goal of the project is to shatter stereotypes about the Brotherhood as an extremist and coercive movement. “Cinema Ikhwan” was created to encourage individual cinematic projects not directly connected to the Muslim Brotherhood.

One such film is the short comedy “the anti-sinning unit” which portrays a surprise visit by a Saudi-like cleric at the home of an ordinary citizen. The surprised man, who quickly tapes a fake beard to his face, is forced to explain to the self-proclaimed “anti-sinning inspector” why he allows himself to drink Pepsi and watch a soccer match.

The film ends with narration that encourages Egyptians not to believe silly rumors about the extremism of the Muslim Brotherhood.

Another film, more political in nature, is an attempt to dissuade undecided Egyptians from voting for Ahmad Shafiq as president. A citizen named Hamdi standing in line to vote explains why he intends to vote for Shafiq, but is convinced to vote for Mohammed Morsi. “Do the right thing, Hamdi!” reads the narrator.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOoBwa05OlQ&list=UU4PLWexBBrE4Buk22GIXg_Q&index=1&feature=plcp

The only criteria posed by the Cinema Ikhwan team for films is the creators’ will to advance “Egypt’s religious awakening and maintain the moral principles of the Egyptian people.”

But the Youtube channel does not limit itself to Egyptian themes, nor to light topics. One video, created by Hamas’s Izz el-Din Al-Qassam Brigades in March 2012, displays a child dressed in army fatigues and carrying an M-16 rifle addressing his father, killed in battle.

“I will not forget, my father, the days when you taught me the love of Jihad and how to use a weapon,” the child says, as the video displays images of the father teaching the boy how to fire the rifle.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTquSUEThMA&feature=relmfu

“Every drop of blood that left your body will be matched by dozens of bullets aimed at the chests of the enemies,” says the boy.