Jordanian cinematographer wins accolades in Canada

AMMAN — The black and white short film "Layers" shows a woman, covered in tattoos, crudely cutting and shaving off her hair.

It drops to the floor, revealing a large scar across her skull.

Gradually, her breathing slows down, and her deep eyes convey a sense of tranquillity that transcends the screen.

“I feel like everyone has layers,” Rasha Amer explained.

Though open to interpretation, her video art symbolises the shedding of the many layers of a person’s identity, a theme that runs like a red line through her work.

"Layers" won Amer, a Jordanian photographer and cinematographer, the Canadian Society of Cinematographers’ (CSC) Student Cinematography Award in March 2013.

“I wanted to experiment more with the visual,” she said, and the unique aesthetics and powerful symbolism of her piece impressed the judges.

Amer told The Jordan Times in a recent interview that she seeks to capture images of people.

Born in Amman, she developed a passion for street photography as a hobby in her twenties while working in logistics. “There’s a lot of interesting faces in Jordan, so you can’t resist [taking photographs].”

Her break came with an exhibition at the Kempinski Hotel, Amman in 2009, where her photographs were exhibited alongside two other Jordanian photographers.

This is where she met her friend and mentor Linda Al Khoury, photographer and founder of Darat Al Tasweer, a photography centre, gallery and photography school in Jabal Luweibdeh.

Khoury offered her critique and guidance, allowing her to develop her technique, Amer said. “She inspired me a lot.”

Since then, she has worked as a professional photographer across the Middle East, including Yemen and Lebanon, for both commercial and artistic projects.

Moving to Canada with her husband, video game art director Hani Abu Ghazaleh, Rasha found it difficult to find her footing professionally.

When the cinematographer of "Birth", an award-wining Canadian short film about genetic illnesses, unexpectedly dropped out of the project, Amer, the camera assistant on the film, stepped up to the task.

This sparked her decision to return to school and complete a one-year film production programme at Vancouver Film School.

“It was a tough decision… everyone told me, you might not make it… but I am happy because it paid off,” she explained.

Her success at the 56th Annual CSC Awards opened “doors and windows” for her in Canada.

“I feel most alive when I do [artistic pieces],” she said, adding that she will continue to work on alternative cinema projects like "Layers".

But she also hopes to delve more into feature films and documentaries using the camera, framing and lighting to tell stories that resonate with her.

Jordan has always been a great source of inspiration for the young artist.

She said she would jump at the chance to collaborate with Jordanian filmmakers on projects about the country and its people.

“We Jordanians have a lot of stories to tell, a lot of talent,” Amer said, expressing her hope to contribute to the film industry in Jordan in the future.

The richness in culture, from the bedouins of the south to the people of old Amman, has much to offer artists like her.

For now, Amer will remain in Canada, but she will return to fulfil her dream of translating the many untold stories of her home country onto the screen, she said.

Originally published in 

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