...
Post A Reply
my profile
|
directory
login
|
register
|
search
|
faq
|
forum home
»
EgyptSearch Forums
»
Egyptology
»
Motion Picture: Goddess of the Sun
» Post A Reply
Post A Reply
Login Name:
Password:
Message Icon:
Message:
HTML is not enabled.
UBB Code™ is enabled.
[QUOTE]Originally posted by Maahes: [QB] [IMG]http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a83/PiAmoun/384px-AmenhotepII-StatueHead_Brookl.png[/IMG] Amenhotep A few thoughts I can share with you, and ones which may prove insightful to many of you here follow: The first issue has to do with Egypt and history. Early Egyptologists were from Europe. Many of the best known archeologists specializing on Egyptian history were Victorians. I don't think anyone would argue that Victorian society had a tendency to be both racist and chauvinistic. Subsequently, my history that is, Egyptian history as it was sysnthesized by this generation was tainted a bit. Certain prejudices and presuppositional biases continue on to this day. But let us be candid. Afrocentricism is an appendange of Eurocentricsm. Both camps are mired in a world view that is only black and white. Europe is a small continent populated by a diversity of widely different ethnicities. Africa is a much larger continent with four times the diversity of ethnic morphotypes. There is more genetic diveristy within the continent of Africa- that is between different African populations than between any other gene groups scattered around the globe. This preconception with 'light-skinned' and 'dark-skinned' has a tendency to obscure the greater topics- the history of humanity - the roles of women and the great cooperation and artistic expression between widely divergent cultures -these were hallmarks of civilization. They still are really. When people argue about the ethnicity of the ancient Egyptians,they are generally not familiar with the racial makeup of Eastern Africa much less Northern Africa. The people that believe that the ancient Egyptians were obsessed with being white or black is false naturally. Most Egyptians continue to identify themselves by their religion, region, clan or tribal affinities. They do not really comprehend the western obsession with classifying people in tiny anectdated boxes. ' If one opens their minds to the naturalistic philosophies and artistic expression of the ancient people of the region and places value in the words and deeds of these peoples, the issue of colour vanishes altogether. I think many of you will appreciate the great attention to detail we have included in this project. The Egyptian army is made up of different battalions and troops of widely different ethnicities. The Fort Buhen Troops are of one dark brown ethnicity known as the Irthet. Other troops within the Egyptian army are Wawat, Dinka and Saite etc. Each division is made obvious by facial features, face paint, weaponry and regalia. We are obviously celebrating the great ethnic diversity of 18th dynasty Egypt- not reducing it to short-sighted Eurocentric notions. Secondly, another issue worth discussing is the lack of good work written specifically for actors of colour. I enjoyed the Lord of the Rings trilogy very much. But it was pretty shocking how this maek believe world couldn't include a single dark-skinned extra. Even the hobbits were Western European- it is the sort of thing we come to expect from Hollywood. I think Daman Wayans said it best when he stated rather reasonably that the situation is dire. Even though everything is makebelieve the ariters and directors cant make believe that people of colour could be doctors or lawyers or people in a coffee shop for that matter. It is really obvious that the writers and directors have racial issues. If they didn't these people would be fairly represented. They/We are not. Thusly, I am greatly honoured to write and develop such an exciting project- one that enlists the contributions from many underutilized talents. I specifically wrote parts for a few of my favorite actors that work very little. Women have a particularly difficult time in Hollywood. If an actor is over 40 and female they have a difficult time. If they are over 25 and of colour they are going to have an even more difficult time of it. Caucasian actresses pop up every year and garner covers and instant recognition fame. But great talents like Tantoo Cardinal and Cicely Tyson are overlooked all too often. Stacey Dash is another actor that know one seems to know what to do with as is Halle Berry. Halle can make mountains move because she is smart, dedicated and blessed with an almost supernatural beauty. But we can all readily appreciate how some of the projects she stars in don't really suit her. The reason? Very few of these scripts are specifically written for women of colour. Lastly, one doesn't need to be a racist to write parts for women of colour to exclusion of Caucasian actresses. One simply has to open up their world view and create worlds where people of different ethnicites and races exist and evolve- that is we adapt to our challenges just like Caucasians do. The major difference is that we people of colour tend to have many more challenges than the average Caucasian might have. A good third of that challenge will be the willful ignorance of other people of colour that subconsiously feel a need to stifle the growth of those around them. We are entering a time in space when not utilizing your power will be viewed as criminal. Have a good long look at the Ethiopian civilization and ask yourself why so little is known about it? So little is ever taught. We allow people to make light of the plight of the masses of starving people in Ethiopia. We refuse to acknowledge them in our thoughts and prayers. When you see a child of Darfur or Somalia or Ethiopia an orphan that has lost her parents and siblings for no good reason at all- you may be inspired as I have to include them in your world view. These stories as I've written of them are from and for the Old World. From the great history of the ancients perhaps we will transform this guiless, materialistic and violent reality we live in today. [/QB][/QUOTE]
Instant Graemlins
Instant UBB Code™
What is UBB Code™?
Options
Disable Graemlins in this post.
*** Click here to review this topic. ***
Contact Us
|
EgyptSearch!
(c) 2015 EgyptSearch.com
Powered by UBB.classic™ 6.7.3