Origin: Austria | Documentary | Director: Fernando Romero Forsthuber | 95 minutes

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Namrud (Troublemaker)

Fernando Romero Forsthuber - documentary - 94 min. - Austria 2017

A film about a vegan rebel from Nazareth.

Palestinian Jowan Safadi is a famous free-spirit and singer songwriter in Israel and the Middle-East. The son of a carpenter from Nazareth, he is a rebel and prominent social conscious. The Arab Spring did not produce new political parties, it is a real cultural revolution and he is at its core. Jowan's lyrics, at once penetrating and witty, have also courted controversy on several occasions: previously investigated for nearly three years in Israel for "inciting terrorism", his last tour to Jordan ended with his arrest and an overnight stay in a prison cell. Jowan sings about the love of his she-dog, about sex, race/ism, refugees, religion and power-politics with near Haiku type lyrics and humour.

The Arab Spring is still alive
He performs in Berlin, Cairo, Oslo, Amman, Helsinki, Brussels, Tel-Aviv and naturally Nazareth. Jowan tackles taboos in a gentle and near philosophical way, both in ‘western’ and ‘eastern’ worlds. Jowan is also a single dad to 15-year-old son Don who lived in the US. The friendly and aggressive verbal exchanges between father and son shape this film. In addition to social questions, he is confronted with parenting in a confused and violent region. How do you balance between the pressure to adapt and a conscious needing rebellion?What does it mean to be a man in today’s world? A Palestinian? An Israeli? A single dad, a teen-ager, an artist, a vegan or Muslim? Mainly, what does it take to be human in today’s world? Thought provoking, beautiful, funny, touching and a fresh insight on the cultural revolution that has not died in the Middle East.

https://vimeo.com/238307010

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