Algerian cinematic art gets boost with new institute

The National Higher Institute of Cinema, the first of its kind in Algeria, has been inaugurated to serve as a space for nurturing talent in the cinematic arts, for protecting local culture, and to contribute to the development of Algerian cinema on Arab, African and global stages.

At the 2 October inauguration ceremony, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Kamel Baddari praised the establishment of the institute, emphasising that it will play a pivotal role in shaping the next generation of professionals in the cinematic arts.

Baddari said the institution will not only enrich Algeria’s cultural sphere, but will also contribute to the national economy through the development of a creative industry.

Named ‘Mohamed Lakhdar Hamina’ and located in the city of Kolea, Tipaza province, the institute will offer higher education programmes within the licence-master-doctorate (LMD) system for its first cohort of students from the National Arts High School (Ali Maâchi) for the 2024-25 academic year.

Students will begin with a common core curriculum in their first year before specialising in various domains of the film industry starting in their second year.

The cinematic work of the institute’s namesake, the Algerian filmmaker Mohamed Lakhdar Hamina, particularly his depiction of the Algerian people’s resistance, has left an indelible mark on filmmaking in the country.

Hamina, the only Arab director to have won the prestigious Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival in 1975, stands as a symbol of Algeria’s rich cultural heritage.

This academic institute is a development that was recommended in a 2021 UNESCO report , The African Film Industry: Trends, challenges and opportunities for growth, which called for developing human workforces for promoting the film sector.

Building an innovative industry

Dr Boulaam Bilal at Larbi Ben M’hidi University of Oum El Bouaghi in Algeria told University World News he strongly “supported” the National Higher Institute of Cinema as “a crucial step towards enhancing Algeria’s film industry”.

“This initiative will not only build a generation of talented professionals, but will also ensure that our cultural heritage and traditions are embedded in the future of cinema,” added Bilal, who is co-author of the 2024 study, ‘The Impact of New Media on Classical Media Philosophy Theories’.

Dr Djenih Amin, a lecturer in the department of media and communication at the University of Mohamed Seddik Benyahia of Jijel in Algeria, agreed with other experts, and told University World News the establishment of the National Higher Institute of Cinema represented a “milestone” for Algeria.

“The institute will undoubtedly contribute to nurturing a skilled workforce, which is essential for building a robust and innovative film industry,” added Amin, who is the co-author of the 2024 study, ‘Women Image in Algerian Cinema between the Past and the Present’.

“By integrating cultural identity into this education, the institute will help to ensure that Algerian traditions and values are preserved and promoted in the global cinematic landscape,” said Amin.

“The upcoming Algerian Cinema City in Tinerkouk further solidifies this vision, offering a unique space for creative development, and fostering economic growth through the knowledge-based economy,” Amin pointed out.

“African countries should also learn from the Algerian model and establish academic institutes for cinematic development for preserving African cultural and traditional values while promoting its film industry for economic development,” Amin added.

Challenges

Dr Saida Kheira Benammar, a lecturer in media studies at the University of Mostaganem in Algeria, told University World News: “Despite the availability of some academic specialisations related to cinema and affiliated with art institutes, this new academic institute, the first of its kind [nationally], came with specific objectives, such as promoting and developing Algerian cinema with a local identity.

“The step taken to establish this institute was more than necessary due to the urgent need to provide cinematic training in line with Algerian identity and values in the field of image, scenario and script composition, filmmaking and production management, especially after the opening of the audiovisual field in Algeria to the private sector and the emergence and diversity of Algerian drama production,” said Benammar, who is a contributor to the 2024 Routledge Handbook on Arab Cinema.

“One of the most important challenges that will face the educational process at the institute is the lack of competencies … in the cinema field and the need to provide the necessary technical capabilities so that the institute is not a building without a soul,” warned Benammar.

The 2024 Algerian study, ‘Reality and prospects of the film industry in Algeria: A comparative study’, indicated that the main characteristics of the film industry are that it requires “specialised university graduates” and that “the number of cinematographers is very low and most of them have emigrated”.

“What the institute needs for good and sound training is to benefit from the Algerian skills available nationally and internationally, as well as to provide the necessary technological capabilities such as production tools and film industry for students to train on.

“There is also a very urgent need to establish cooperation partnerships and exchanges at the research level between the institute and leading Arab universities in the field of cinema, such as Egypt, for example, at the Arab level and European universities,” she said.