Tunisian director and producer Abdellatif Ben Ammar died Monday, February 6 in Tunis at the age of 79. He was a pioneer, a founding father of the Tunisian seventh art. Abdellatif Ben Ammar began with higher studies in mathematics before turning to cinema. And it was in Paris at IDHEC, the Institute for Advanced Film Studies, currently FEMIS, that he studied. He participated in national and international productions before working on his own films. The Ministry of Culture regretted ” the loss of a great figure of Tunisian cinema “.
It was by obtaining a scholarship that he was able to study in Paris. Before he left, the then Minister of Culture, Chedli Klibi, told him: I expect a lot from you “.
When he returned to the country in 1965, he produced the news broadcast at the time in cinemas before each film. This experience allowed him to visit all the regions of Tunisia and rub shoulders with the inhabitants and get to know closely their concerns following independence.
A democratic decline then appeared, announcing the beginnings of a totalitarian regime.
In his early days, Abdellatif Ben Ammar worked with several Tunisian and international directors. He was able to assist several great directors, such as Larry Buchanan on Rebel Jesus, Roberto Rosselini on The Messiah and Claude Chabrol on The Magicians.
In Jesus of Nasareth of Franco Zeffirelli, he held the position of production manager.
A modern artistic thought
His first feature film, A simple story, was selected at the Cannes Film Festival in 1970, which allowed Tunisia to be present for the first time in the official selection.
His second film, Sejnane (1973) won the special jury prize at the Fespaco in Ouagadougou in 1976. This film is among the 100 best films in the history of Arab cinema.
At the Carthage Festival, he was three times laureate and this is his film Aziza (1980) which won the Golden Tanit in Tunis. It dealt with development, liberalism, and the emergence of Islamism in Tunisia.
Besides, Aziza And Sejnane are ranked among the ten best Tunisian films.
His last movie, Wounded palms (2010) showed the struggle of Tunisians against colonialism.
In 2021, in his presence, the Alexandria Festival paid him a tribute.
Abdellatif Ben Ammar, this always calm man, knew how to associate, in his cinematographic language, the feelings and the emotions with the life and the social action. His works embodied the modernity of his artistic thought.