In haar eerste film, gemaakt met een heel klein budget en geleend materiaal, schetst Atteyat Al-Abnoudy het basisproces achter het vervaardigen van leemblokken langs de Nijloevers. De censors weigerden de film omdat hij zeer arme mensen laat zien ondanks twintig jaar van revolutie in Egypte. Uiteindelijk verleenden ze toestemming voor niet-commerciële vertoningen waarna de film toch meer dan dertig internationale prijzen zou gaan winnen.
“For the first time, the people talk about themselves, and we listen to their voices, not a cleverly written commentary on what the people are doing, like strangers coming from the sky, telling us what we are seeing now ... The brick factory workers dominate the screen: their faces, their hands and their suffering ... I worked on this 10-minute film for two years, because I had no money, and also because the bricks have to be dried in the sun. I shot the film at the end of the summer, and I had to wait till the next summer to complete it.”
Arabic spoken, English subtitles
Film prints courtesy of Arsenal – Institute for Film and Video Art
