Last Friday, the organizing committee of Carthage cinematographic days (JCC) held a press conference during which he announced, in addition to the program of the thirtieth edition which will take place from October 26 to November 2, 2019, that it will bear the name and will be dedicated to Néjib Ayed, Director General of 2017, 2018 and 2019 editions, suddenly disappeared last August from the festival.
After a minute of silence, Ms. Chiraz Laatiri, CEO of the CNCI thanked Néjib Ayed for having formed a work team to which he instilled the love of the JCC and who was able to continue the work after his departure, while respecting his vision and the program he had himself traced for this edition.
With tears in her voice, Ms. Najet Nabli Ayed, coordinator with the 2019 Carthage Cinematographic Days Committee, recalled that her husband had gave herself entirely to the JCC, working with all her strength to wear. For three years, he had fought for this festival and for his return to the fundamentals that had characterized him since its creation. For him, the JCC is an activist festival, whose mission is to be at the service of Arab-African cinema, professionals and especially the film buff which he was so proud.
Ms. Najet Nabli Ayed then announced that after the tribute to him during the opening evening of the festival, an official tribute ceremony will take place the next day on Sunday October 27 during which the friends and traveling companions of the late Néjib Ayed will intervene to speak of the man, the filmmaker, the friend and the visionary artist he was. Among the speakers, M. Mohamed Zinelabidine, Minister of Cultural Affairs, Ms. Chiraz Laatiri, Director General of the CNCI, Mr. Hassen Alilech, Director of the International Film for the Childhood and Youth of Sousse, Mr. Hakim Ben Hamouda, economist and former Minister of Finance, Mr. Amine Boukhris and Mr. Haumadi Arafa, Ms. Leila Toubel M.Ahmed Ayed.
Ms. Ayed, moved and very affected, also paid tribute to the late Chawki Mejri, close friend and collaborator of the late Néjib Ayed. The deceased who was to be among the speakers and who disappeared a few days ago, also wanted to testify his pain in the long way, but fate decided otherwise.
Mr. Raja Farhat, as a master of ceremonies will order the tempo. On the program, music: a musical piece specially composed for the occasion by Christian Leroy (Belgium), singing with the sublime Zohra Lajnef and the piano still with Selim Arjoun.
Ms. Najet Nabli Ayed also considered that the creation of a space dedicated to moviegoers, the Federation of Cine-Clubs and associations active in the cinema, within the Cité de la Culture, would be the most beautiful tribute to Néjib Ayed and a proof of loyalty to the founding spirit of Carthage’s cinematographic days.
Which is a great idea. For this Nejib Ayed session, as all the films in competition will first be screened at the Cité de la culture and will therefore drain a very numerous audience, it would indeed be very interesting that this city, could have a living space, relaxation and appointments for the public and the professionals.
The idea of Ms. Ayed is “ to transform the great hall of the City of Culture into a real home, with the care and comfort worthy of such a prestigious place. A home, which would offer the ideal setting for real meetings between moviegoers and festival guests ».
Throughout the duration of the JCC, this hall could indeed become a place where spectators could debate, speak cinema and get to know each other, while resting between projections.
One might also think of devoting part of this hall to a tribute exhibition to Néjib Ayed and the Tunisian Federation of Ciné-Clubs (FTCC) which he liked so much. We could find rare FTCC documents, objects that belonged to Néjib Ayed, posters of his films….
Such an exhibition would also be a natural extension to the feature films which are scheduled in tribute to Nejib Ayed and announced during the press conference by Mrs. Lamia Guiga, artistic general delegate, who told a sad and moving anecdote: this summer, a few days before her death, she had pointed out to fire Nejib Ayed only all the films of all the sections had been selected except those in the section Tributes that still lacked. He then replied that he thought he was abandoning this section, still reserved for the dead.
Fate has made that for this 2019 edition, this section will be devoted to the late Nejib Ayed. Five films produced or co -produced by him, and having marked his career and reflecting his artistic journey, will therefore be projected to the public:
- The desert tags (El Haimoune)made in 1984 by Nacer Khémir;
- The trace, Made in 1988 by Néjia Ben Mabrouk;
- Odyssey, Made in 2003 by Brahim Babai;
- The Kingdom of Ants, Made in 2012 by Shawki Mejri;
- War reporterproduced in 2013 by Amine Boukhris.
It is also during this press conference that the poster of this edition was unveiled, which is a marriage between the Tanit of the JCC and the stylization of the late Néjib Ayed.
Ms. Najet Nabil Ayed chose it from several proposals ” Because it looks like a cinema poster, which it does not denote with the visuals of the JCC of this 2019 session, but especially for the Tanit that can be confused with the disorderly locks of Néjib Ayed and also for its unfinished side, like a sketch, like a portrait drawn on the corner of a table of Bistrot ».
Neïla Driss
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