Yemen Travelogue - Days at Shibam and Seiyun (2008)
Directed by Michael Pilz
Run Time - 160 min. |
Countries - United States |
MPAA Rating - NR
Share on
Synopsis by Mark Deming
In 2006, Austrian filmmaker Michael Pilz traveled to Yemen with his friend Nikolaus Scholz, a musician who was working on a recording project with the Shibam District Music and Traditional Arts Ensemble. Shibam is a city famous for its tall clay-brick buildings, and as Scholz and his colleagues worked on their album during the day, Pilz wandered the streets of the city, documenting the sights and sounds with a digital camera as he explored his surroundings as inconspicuously as possible. Yemen Travelogue: Days At Shibam and Seiyun is a documentary Pilz assembled from his footage; the director opted not to add narration or translate the speech of the local residents appearing on screen, instead presenting a personal and naturalistic portrayal of Yemen's people, architecture and surroundings, with a particular emphasis on Shibam's large Muslim community. Yemen Travelogue received its world premiere at the 2010 Rotterdam International Film Festival.