Experiencing Interruptions?

Rough Stage

Maher, a Palestinian man is a former political prisoner. He is an electrical engineer by profession but an artist at heart. He dreams of staging a contemporary dance performance in Ramallah. In order to do so, he must deal with his disapproving family, tight budgets and cultural norms. Set in today’s most contested location, Maher’s story is a parable about a society in conflict, where the real war is between dreams and tradition.

  • Toomas Järvet
    Director
  • Toomas Järvet
    Writer
  • Eero Talvistu
    Producer
  • Maher Shawamreh
    Key Cast
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Genres:
    Portrait, Society, Arts & Culture, Current Affairs
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 14 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    November 22, 2015
  • Production Budget:
    20,000 EUR
  • Country of Filming:
    Palestine, State of
  • Language:
    Arabic, English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • IDFA International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam
    Amsterdam
    November 22, 2015
    World Premiere
    First Appearance Competition Nomination
  • Escales Documentary Film Festival, La Rochelle
    La Rochelle
    France
    November 10, 2016
    Grand Jury Prize
  • Estonian Young Filmmaker of the Year Award 2016 for the director and cinematographer
  • Festival international FILMER LE TRAVAIL, Poitiers
    Poitiers
    France
    February 15, 2017
    Public Award
  • Pärnu International Documentary Film Festival
    Pärnu
    Estonia
    July 10, 2016
    Best Estonian Film Award
  • DocPoint Helsinki Documentary Film Festival
    Helsinki
    January 27, 2016
    Nordic Premiere
  • Tempo Documentary Film Festival of Stockholm
    Stockholm
    March 9, 2016
    Swedish Premiere
  • FIDADOC Agadir
    Agadir
    Morocco
    May 4, 2016
    North African Premiere
  • Listapad, Minsk International Film Festival
    Minsk
    Belarus
    November 8, 2016
  • The Panorama of the European Film in Cairo
    Cairo
    Egypt
    November 8, 2016
  • Semaine des cinémas étrangers Paris
    Paris
    March 13, 2016
    French Premiere
  • "Palestine with Love" Festival, Brussels
    Brussels
    Belgium
    May 30, 2016
    Belgium Premiere
  • Take One Action Film Festival, Scotland
    Edinburgh & Glasgow
    United Kingdom
    September 20, 2016
    UK
  • Estonian Film Days in Ukraine
    Kiev
    February 27, 2016
    Ukranian Premiere
  • Days of Cinema Film Festival, Ramallah
    Ramallah
    Palestine, State of
    October 16, 2016
    Sun Bird Award, in competition
  • Leeds Palestinian Film Festival
    Leeds
    United Kingdom
    November 29, 2016
  • Estonian Film Week 2016, Strassbourg
    Strassbourg
    France
    October 20, 2016
Distribution Information
  • Visible Film
    Country: Worldwide
    Rights: All Rights
Director Biography - Toomas Järvet

Toomas Järvet is born in Tallinn, Estonia. He studied law and cultural theory, but always had a thing for visual arts and so he found his medium in photography. Things got more cinematic when he decided to go for the Master Degree in Visual Anthropology at Barcelona University, where he finally was able to match the left and right side of his brain. He was selected for the IDFA Academy (2011) and was also a participant at the Berlinale Talent Campus (2013). His first short documentary “Over and Out” was in competition at the Visions du Reel (2012) and several other festivals. “Rough Stage” is his first feature documentary. At the development/production stage it was selected for the Dragon Forum, DOK Leipzig Co-Production Market and Festival dei Popoli Doc at Work pitching. “Rough Stage” had it's World Premiere at IDFA 2015.

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Director Statement

When I look at Rough Stage as a whole, I realize that even though Maher’s path is not an easy one and he must struggle with conflict after conflict on a daily basis, the film introduces the viewer to a different side of Palestine and helps to dispel the stereotype of a masked Palestinian man with knife in one hand and a stones in the other. As Maher, the main character of the film, I also believe that the road to freedom should be paved with non-violent resistance and not with death and destruction.