Sunday 22/11/2009 Incident

Chevalier des Arts et Lettres for Rector Çashku

Extract from Vizion Plus TV “Zonë e lirë” (Free Zone) by Arjan Çani, 19 June 2009.

AFMM’s AGGRESSION by Top Channel and Arb Security 18.06.09

CITY HALL PROTEST 180609 PROTESTA PARA BASHKISË

PRESS RELEASE AFMM 16 June 2009

Top Channel destroying bicentenary olive trees with bulldozers....

Today, on the 16 June 2009, around 9:00 am, bringing along a bulldozer and other equipment, Top Channel with the support of Jori Security (under contract simultaneously with Albafilm Ministry of Culture and Top Channel), without a construction or environment permit, started the macabre destruction of the trees and bicentenary olives in the premises of Kinostudio, at the ex-film lab building next to Marubi Academy.

This act was perpetrated, based on a Decision of the Council of Ministers which doesn’t permit constructions, but just the rent of existent surfaces specifying the obligation of not changing the destination of the existing objects land and building, and on a surrounding permit signed by Tirana’s Mayor and Chief of Opposition Edi Rama.

Despite the AFMM, civil society protest continuing from 120 Days, sometimes violently oppressed by and under the eyes of indifferent State and private police, the murdering of the trees, along with the vanishing of green spaces and the unicentrist betonisation, is today an aggressive cancer attacking every healthy cell of Albanian Citizens.

WE SAW HOW TIRANA AND ALBANIA DEGRADED DURING THOSE YEARS, IN THE NAME OF CAPITAL, BUSINESS, HOUSING, AN OSTENSIBLE DEVELOPMENT…

Today we can unanimously state, we passed from the bunker era to the concrete one.

But the Kinostudio is the historical place where Albanian collective memory was produced and stored. As such it can’t be the place of the contemporary concrete construction, same as the National Theatre and everything around it with the 2001 failed attempt of skyscraper concrete “modernization”.

Forgetting that it is a national necessity, the preservation and the care of “national memory” and of its representing institutions. One day we’ll have to show what we created and produced in this spot, it is today possible that only legends and myths remain as a witness.

AFMM was born in this territory as a continuation of this mission, that’s why we are on our right to preserve our academic facilities, as well as the destination of a space of European Emancipation of our country.

No citizen shall be subjected anymore to betonisation that is cutting the life’s breath, and should seek to meet all the rights of living standards:

dignity, clean air and not dust or cancer smog, non polluted water, where you see green spaces and not sad concrete, and when this ostensible citizen goes in his luxury apartment, will not feel bad by breathing the disgusting air of this city.

Pushed by those alarming destruction acts against the environment and its values, after alerting the Council of Ministers, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Interior, the Tirana City Hall, the Construction Inspectorate, the Municipal Police, receiving for only answer the silence, as only silence we received during the 120 days of siege along with State Police violence, the private security and especially the total INDIFFERENCE of the cultural public institutions as National Film Center, the Institute of Cultural Monuments and the Albanian Film Archive, located just a few meters where the physical violence and the environmental massacre, citizens, civil society representatives, university members of the Albanian Universities Consortium, representatives of the Albanian Filmmaker Association Lumière, and representatives of the legitimate land owners the Hysa family, will protest tomorrow 17 June 2009, at 10:00 am in front of the Tirana City Hall.

AFMM Public Relations Office

Komunikatë për shtyp / Press Release / Communiqué de presse 27 . 05 . 2009

( For English and French translations, please scroll down.)

Shtëpia filmike Orafilm dhe Akademia e filmit dhe Multimedias Marubi, kanë nderin t’Ju njoftojnë, se regjizori dhe Rektori Kujtim Çashku, është ftuar të marrë pjesë në Grupin e Ekspertëve (think tank) për politika kulturore kinematografike europiane dhe edukimin me filmin, me temë, The Image of Europe, që do të mbahet në Berlin në muajin Maj.

Në këtë mbledhje të rendësishme për politikat kulturore në europë z. Çashku është ftuar në cilësinë e Rektorit të AFMM dhe anëtarit të Akademisë Europiane, nga presidenti i Akademisë Europiane të Filmit z. Wim Wenders dhe zevendës presidenti i Bordit të AEF, z Volker Schlöndorff.

Mbledhja tre ditore do të kryesohet nga Presidenti i Komisionit Europian zoti José Manuel Barroso.
Në të janë të ftuar disa nga kineastët më të njohur Europian si: Wim Wenders, Volker Schlondorff, Michael Athlen, Costantin Costas Gavras, Fernando Trueba, Admir Kenoviç, Nino Kartadze, Marjane Satrapi, Johanna ter Steege, Istvan Szabo etj, si dhe autoritet politike të Qeverisë Gjermane dhe institucioneve Europiane.

Në të njëjtën kohë përfitojmë nga rasti të informojmë opinionin publik, se aktet e dhunës psikike e fizike ndaj AFMM, nga qeveria shqiptare dhe media “e pavarur” vazhdojnë pa asnjë ndryshim dhe kërkesat e përsëritura të Orafilm dhe AFMM për të gjetur zgjidhje, kanë gjetur si përgjigje heshtjen e Qeverisë dhe mos pranimin e kurfarë takimi duke shkelur hapur mes shumë ligjesh dhe Kodin e Procedurës Administrative. Aktivizimi i elementëve anonimë të administratës kulturore, të cilët vazhdojnë të ushtrojnë presion kriminal duke reflektuar kështu vizionin e kësaj qeverie për kulturën arsimin, ka për qëllim final shkatërrimin përfundimtar të patrimonit kinematografik të ish Kinostudios, duke përzënë kineastët nga ai territor historik, duke i ndryshuar destinacionin e mbrojtur me ligj të ish-kinostudios e duke e përdorur këtë të fundit për blerje të errëta institucionesh të pavarura me destinacion publik.

Sot në ditën e nisjes së rektorit Çashku per këtë takim të rëndësishëm, duke shkelur ligjet përfaqësuesit Top Channel, pa asnjë të drejtë ligjore dhe duke përfituar nga mungesa e titullarit të institucionit, kanë ardhur në ambjentet e AFMM, dhe kanë deklaruar se nesër do ti vënë fadromën parkut, duke filluar që nesër bllokimin total të hyrjes së AFMM-së, dhe të daljes së zjarrit të saj dhe të Arkivit Shtetëror të Filmit. Drejtuesit e AQSHF vazhdojnë të heshtin, ndaj këtij rreziku që i kanoset sot kulturës sonë kombëtare kinematografike. Pak më vonë përfaqsuesit e TCH erdhen dhe i tërhoqen deklarimet e tyre, duke thënë se do të rivijnë pas një jave kur zoti Çashku të kthehet. Gjithsesi sot u mbyll përfundimisht me gardh teli dalja në rast zjarri.
Gjithashtu Qëndra Kombëtare e Kinematografisë, vazhdon heshtjen e cila provon tërësisht implikimin e saj në inspirimin e operacioneve të paprecedent e të paligjëshme në dëm të AFMM.
I bëjmë thirrje dhe një herë Top Channel të heqë dorë nga aktet që në të ardhmen e afërt do t’i bëjnë të ndihen të turpëruar. Çfarëdo që ju dhe qeveritë pa vizion, të bëni a ndërtoni në atë lulishte, ai vend, në mbrojtje të të cilit u rrahën nga policia e shtetit studentë, pedagogë, artistë dhe intelektual, tashmë është pjesë e historisë së kinemasë së vendit tonë, histori e cila do të mësohet në shkolla.

Lufta Vazhdon…

Eol Çashku
Kineast, Drejtor i Produksionit AFMM

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Orafilm Production and the Academy of Film and Multimedia Marubi have the honor to inform you that the director and Rector Kujtim Çashku is invited to participate in the Think Tank for European Cinematographic Cultural and Educational Policy on the topic of “The Image of Europe”, which shall be held in Berlin in May.

In this important meeting concerning the cultural policy in Europe, Mr. Çashku is invited in the capacity of the Rector of the AFMM and of the member of the European Academy, from the President of the European Academy of Film, Mr. Wim Wenders, and the Deputy Chairman of EFA Board, mr. Volker Schlöndorff.
This 3-day meeting is under the auspices of the President of the European Commission Mr. José Manuel Barosso.
Some of the most famous European filmmakers are invited in this Think Tank such as: Wim Wenders, Volker Schlondorff, Michael Athlen, Costantin Costas Gavras, Fernando Trueba, Admir Kenoviç, Nino Kartadze, Marjane Satrapi, Johanna ter Steege, Istvan Szabo etc, as well as other political authorities of German Government and other European Institutions.

At the same time we take this advantage to inform the public opinion, that the physical and the psychological intimidating acts against AFMM, from the part of the Albanian government and the “independent” media continue without any change and the to the repeated demands of Orafilm and AFMM to find a solution, the government has turned a deaf ear and has not accepted to negotiate by openly violating among other laws, the Administrative Procedural Code.

The activation of the anonymous cultural administration, who continue to exercise criminal pressure thus, reflects the vision of this government as to art and culture, which final goal is to finally destroy the cinematographic patrimony of former Kinostudio, by chasing away the cinematographers from that historic territory, by changing its destination protected by law and using the latter to buy independent institutions with public destination in a occult manner.

Today, on the day of departure of Rector Çashku for this important meeting, by violating the laws, representatives of Top Channel, without any legal right and taking advantage by the non-presence of the head of the institution, have come today at the premises of AFMM stating that tomorrow they would use the bulldozers to destroy the park. He came and changed his statement a bit later, saying that they’re waiting for rector Çashku return. Thus, they blocked by wire fence today the Fire Exit Street so there will be no access for ER cases and to the State Archive of Film. The Authorities of the Central Archive of Film keep observing their silence in the face of this danger act to our national cinematographic culture. Also, the National Center of Cinematography with its complete silence, perfectly prove their implication in the inspiration of the unprecedented and unlawful operations against AFMM.

We urge once again Top Channel to give up from these acts which in the near future would make them feel ashamed.

Whatever you and the visionless governments could do in that park, that place about which protection students, professors and artists were beaten up by the police, now is part of the cinematographic history of our country, history that will be taught at schools.

The battle goes on…

Eol Çashku
Cineaste, director of productions AFMM

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La Maison de production Orafilm et l’Académie du Film & Multimédia Marubi ont l’honneur de vous informer que le réalisateur et recteur Kujtim Çashku est invité à participer au groupe d’experts (Think Tank) sur la politique culturelle cinématographique européenne et l’éducation filmique, sur le thème “L’Image de l’Europe” qui se tiendra à Berlin, au mois de mai 2009.

Dans cette réunion importante pour la politique culturelle européenne, M. Çashku est convié en qualité de recteur de l’AFMM et membre de l’Académie Européenne, par le Président de l’Académie Européenne du Film (European Film Academy) M. Wim Wenders et le vice-président du comité de l’EFA, M. Volker Schlöndorff.

S’étalant sur trois jours, la réunion sera sous le patronage du Président de la Commission Européenne M. José Manuel Barroso.
Sont invités quelques-uns des cinéastes européens les plus célèbres tels que: Wim Wenders, Volker Schlöndorff, Michael Athlen, Constantin Costa-Gavras, Marjane Satrapi, Istvan Szabo, Fernando Trueba, Admir Kenoviç, Nino Kirtadze, Johanna ter Steege, ainsi que les autorités politiques du gouvernement allemand et des institutions européennes.

Nous profitons de l’occasion pour informer l’opinion publique que les actions de violence psychologique et physique envers l’AFMM, de la part du gouvernement albanais et des médias “indépendants”, continuent sans aucun changement, et que les demandes répétées d’Orafilm et de l’AFMM pour trouver une solution n’ont eues pour seule réponse que le silence du Gouvernement et le refus de tout entretien, enfreignant ainsi ouvertement plusieurs lois ainsi que le code de procédure administrative. L’activation d’éléments anonymes de l’administration culturelle, qui continuent d’appliquer une pression criminelle reflétant ainsi la vision de ce gouvernement pour la culture et l’enseignement, a pour but final la destruction totale du patrimoine cinématographique de l’ancien Kinostudio, en chassant les cinéastes de ce territoire historique, changeant sa destination protégée par la loi, l’utilisant pour l’achat occulte d’institutions indépendantes à destination publique.

Aujourd’hui, après le départ de M. Çashku pour ce rendez-vous important, des représentants de Top Channel, enfreignant les lois, sans droit légal et profitant de l’absence du titulaire de l’institution, sont venus dans les locaux de l’AFMM, et ont déclaré que demain ils reviendraient avec des bulldozers dans le parc, commençant alors le blocage total de l’entrée, et de la voie de secours de l’AFMM et de l’Archive Nationale du Film. Les dirigeants de l’Archive Nationale du Film continuent à se taire, face à ce danger qui menace aujourd’hui notre culture nationale cinématographique. Un peu plus tard, ils revinrent et retirèrent leur déclaration, annonçant qu’ils reviendraient dans une semaine, une fois que M. Çashku serait rentré. Dans tous les cas, aujourd’hui la sortie de secours a été condamné avec un grillage.
De même, le Centre National de la Cinématographie reste dans le silence prouvant ainsi pleinement sa contribution à l’inspiration des opérations sans précédent et hors la loi menées contre l’AFMM.

Nous lançons un appel, de nouveau, à Top Channel de cesser ses actions qui dans un futur proche la rendront honteuse. Quoique vous et le gouvernement sans vision construisiez dans ce jardin fleuri, cet endroit, pour qui se sont fait frapper par la police, étudiants, pédagogues, artistes et intellectuels, fait aujourd’hui partie de l’histoire du cinéma de notre pays, histoire qui s’enseignera dans les écoles.

La combat continue…

Eol Çashku

Cinéaste, directeur des productions AFMM