New Documentary Project: Jazz International/The Middle East
August 31, 2023: The interview with jazz electric bassist Ahmed Nazmi II accomplished over Zoom. Nazmi provided a wealth of information about jazz in Egypt.
August 30, 2023: Mo Qian, who designed the animated logo for Dr. Marlow’s “Jazz in China” documentary, submits comps for a “Jazz in the Middle East” logo.
August 28, 2023: Sabrina Amoriello joins the production team as a research associate working directly with Dr. Marlow
August 23, 2023: Dr. Marlow receives the names and email addresses of several Arabic performers living in New York City who could talk about Arabic rhythms as they relate to jazz from trhe folks at The Brooklyn Haqam.
August 22, 2023: Dr. Marlow (producer/director) interviewed Russian jazz journalist Cyril Moshkow located in Moscow about his documentary dealing with the 100-year history of jazz in Russia. The interview will be used at a later time. Later that day Dr. Marlow interviewed Howard Lawes just outside London about his article “Jazz in Arabic Culture.” Lawes provided some links to relevant performances in and around the Middle East.
Week of August 21: The Nazmi (electric bass player) interview originally scheduled for August 8 was postponed until this week. An interview with Russian jazz journalist Cyril Moshkow is scheduled for August 22, 2023.
Week of August 14: It was discovered that a documentary on the 100 year history of jazz in Russia has been produced and is in the process of morphing into a series. Russia, therefore, has been taken off the list. It has also been decided to focus on the The Middle East as the center of the documentary. The countries Turkey and Vietnam may very well deserve their own documentary each.
July 20, 2023: We completed the first of several interviews for the documentary: Fathy Salama in Cairo. Mr. Salama is a renowned and celebrated jazz pianist in Egypt.
July 17, 2023
Project Description The in-progress feature-length documentary (60-90 minutes) will show how jazz—a democratic genre of music through improvised individual freedom of expression—exists and can thrive in countries with a history of adherence to authoritarianism. The documentary will divide into three sections: The Middle East, Russia, and Southeast Asia. The countries projected to be included in the documentary are Egypt, Iran, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Russia, and Vietnam. The documentary will include interviews with leading indigenous jazz musicians, historical and cultural experts, jazz audiences, as well photographic and filmic archival content, and performance footage in clubs, festivals, and educational institutions.
This project has received support from the Professional Staff Congress (City University of New York) and the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences (Baruch College). It is fiscally sponsored by the New York Foundation for the Arts.
Development Work, 2023-2024: Producer/Director/Writer Dr. Marlow conducted pre-production research in spring 2023 in anticipation of production (Fall 2023) and post-production (Spring 2024) for the documentary. During spring 2023 two research assistants worked with Dr. Marlow to identify potential interviewees. One research assistant identified extant books, articles, and mentions dealing with jazz activities in the abovementioned countries. Jazz activities include jazz clubs, jazz festivals, jazz education, and jazz programming on radio and television. A second assistant researched extant archival video and graphic materials found online. The results of these two research activities will be cross-referenced in June-July 2023 to develop an initial interviewee contact list.
During late summer 2023 potential interviewees will be contacted and scheduled for interviews in early fall 2023 via Zoom. Zoom was the technology used by Dr. Marlow to conduct interviews for his award-winning, feature-length documentary “Jazz in China.”
Interviewee transcriptions will be accomplished as interviews are completed. During winter 2023-2024 the transcriptions will be used to formulate a roughcut script and video edit. A rough cut will be completed in Spring 2024 which will be shown to private audiences for feedback to be followed by completion of a fine cut.
Other 2024 activities include additional graphics research, color correction, audio mixing and mastering, presentation of portions of the documentary on April 30, 2024, International Jazz Day via UNESCO’s web site, entry of the completed documentary into film festivals, showings in various classes at Baruch College (where Dr. Marlow is a fulltime professor), and promotion of the project in domestic and international publications (print and online).
Vision Statement: The project is about jazz as “free speech” at a time when authoritarianism appears to be growing around the world.
Other than Marlow’s “Jazz in China” documentary, there are no extant documentaries that explore the juxtaposition of jazz as a democratic form of individual freedom of expression in the context of authoritarian countries. The proposed project, especially, will also add to the meagre catalogue of documentaries dealing with jazz outside the United States.
One of Dr. Marlow’s directorial goals is to create a work that does not include any professional voiceover or narration. He chooses this approach because he perceives this allows the audience to get closer to the individuals telling their story. He succeeded in doing this with the “Jazz in China” documentary where the principals tell the story of jazz in China in their own voice. Historical content links were accomplished via billboards, music and sound effects. Dr. Marlow intends to apply a similar approach to the proposed project.
This documentary project is an outgrowth of Dr. Eugene Marlow’s success with the 2022 release of the feature-length (60 minutes) documentary “Jazz in China.” It garnered “official” acceptance at 11 domestic and international film festivals and earned two awards: an “Award of Excellence” from the 2022 Depth of Field International Film Festival; it was the winner of the 2022 American Insight “Free Speech Film Festival.” Professor Marlow’s documentary is based on his acclaimed
The Production Team: The production team that worked on the “Jazz in China” documentary will also work on the “Jazz in Authoritarian Countries” project, namely: Eugene Marlow, MBA, Ph.D./Producer/Director/Writer; Jiefei Yuan/Editor; and Jan Sileo/Graphics Consultant. Zoom will again be used as a primary means of conducting interviews. Onomatopoeia (New York City) will again serve as the facility for audio mixing and mastering.
Collectively, this New York City-located production team has decades of award-winning video and documentary production experience.
Public Presentations: The intended audience for the proposed documentary is broad: anyone with an interest in jazz as cultural expression, history, education, international cultural exchange, the influence of communications and information technologies on the spread of culture globally, and freedom of speech.
There will be several public presentations of the documentary project to New York State audiences: (1) a rough cut will be shown to various private audiences for feedback, followed by completion of a fine cut; (2) entry of the completed documentary into New York State film festivals; (3) presentation of the documentary on April 30, 2024, International Jazz Day via UNESCO’s web site (there is a strong jazz community in New York State); (4) showings in various classes at Baruch College, City University of New York (where Dr. Marlow is a fulltime professor), as well as Hunter College and City College; (5) presentation of the documentary at New York public libraries, such as the Brooklyn Heights Library where Dr. Marlow has previously shown his “Jazz in China” documentary; (6) showings on CUNY-TV. Dr. Marlow’s documentary short “Kristallnacht” and “Jazz in China” have been aired multiple times on The City University of New York’s television channel; (7) showings at the Jazz Museum of Harlem and the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture; (8) a feature article in the New York City Jazz Record; (9) an interview on Judy’s Carmichael’s NPR program “Jazz Inspired”; (10) showing on WLIW (Long Island) and NYC Life (WNYE-DT1) television channels; (11) feature interview on Spectrum News NY1 (cable channel); and (12) identification of Egyptian, Vietnamese, Turkish, Saudi Arabian, Russian, and Iranian communities in New York State for potential showings.