Crossroads Catalogue 2009

ISRAELManshadCreditsProduced by: Oriana ProductionsDirector: Avi MusselScriptwriter: Amit RonBudget: 1.015.000 EurosAvi MusselDirectorContactM: +972-54-5595280mussel@netvision.net.ilFilmographyMactub (TV), 2004Korby’s Girlfriend (short), 1999SynopsisHaled, a stocky 40-year-old Bedouin, is charged with a rape he didn’t commit. In an attempt to prove hisinnocence he embarks on a quest among his friends and family. In the process, Haled is sucked into thetribal justice system and codes of honour. During his search for respectable men who will vouch for himin the Manshad (the trial), he discovers who the real rapist is, understands the destiny awaiting the younggirl who was raped, and realizes that due to these same codes and laws, there is nothing he can do againstthe rapist. Haled can be acquitted of the charges, but then he will have to choose between the good ofhis family and his life within the tribe, and what he feels is the right thing to do.Director’s StatementManshad is about people and before anything else, we will focus on the characters, who are searchingand fighting for their grip on a world constantly changing. Capturing the disappearing world of theBedouins is my ambition. Life as part of a tribe, the strong traditions and the proximity to the earth – thiswill all be told through our hero, Haled. This is not a political film, nor a documentary. It is the story of oneBedouin and through him the story depicts part of the Bedouin existence of today, not as colourful folklore,but in a realistic way. There is another hero in the film – the desert. This is a desert film – it will beshot in the desert and look like it – dry, arid, exposed, beaten by the sun during the day, freezing at night.Manshad is a film about dust, wind and fire and about its people.22