Sophia Al-Maria: Temporal Vertigo
This programme contains 10 films.
‘Temporal Vertigo’ is a wide-ranging selection of moving image work made by artist, writer and filmmaker Sophia Al-Maria over the last seven years. As schizophrenic in form as it is in chronology, the ten works shown move from essay film to music video, documentary, narrative, performance and all points in between. Included are the two part ‘Gulf Futurism’ essay film The Future Was Desert, which images the desert as a place outside of time; enigmatic science-fiction/documentary hybrid Mothership; and two music videos for Fatima Al Qadiri. This program represents the first retrospective screening of Al-Maria’s formally rigorous and beautifully cinematic work, providing a view of visual and thematic cross-contaminations between many different projects.
Q&A with filmmaker Sophia Al-Maria
The Future Was Desert (Part I)
‘Mankind’s days are numbered, all their activities will be nothing but wind’
—Sumerian proverb
Director
Sophia Al-Maria
Production Country
United KingdomProduction Year
2016Duration
5 mins
Fatima Al Qadiri: How Can I Resist U
Qatari Supercars on Edgeware Road / London towerblocks / and so much Gulfie Arab donk
Director
Sophia Al-Maria
Production Country
United KingdomProduction Year
2011Duration
4 mins
choque
FIFA Qatar and FIFA Brazil all mixed together
Director
Sophia Al-Maria
Production Countries
Brazil QatarProduction Year
2014Duration
5 mins
Slaughter
Rushes of the 2012 Eid al-Adha slaughter shot for the climax of the abandoned feature film Beretta
Director
Sophia Al-Maria
Production Country
EgyptProduction Year
2013Duration
6 mins
Mothership
A baby bird moves in the sand, watched by a mysterious stranger
Director
Sophia Al-Maria
Production Countries
Qatar United KingdomProduction Year
2017Duration
3 mins
D0ved0wn
Though only the recipient can fully decode this video love letter, it is general enough to be read as a universal love poem
Director
Sophia Al-Maria
Duration
3 mins
Fatima Al Qadiri: Spiral ft. Bobo Secret
A belly dance-off mixing femme and masc in a sensual homage to the form
Director
Sophia Al-Maria
Production Country
United KingdomProduction Year
2017Duration
5 mins
Not Really in Reality Reality TV
A surreal interview with Chinese-American actress Bai Ling, cast as a ‘love goddess’ and speaking on the subject of vengefulness
Director
Sophia Al-Maria
Production Country
United KingdomProduction Year
2017Duration
4 mins
Wayuu Creation Myth
A companion piece to The Magical State, Ziruma reveals the bloody Wayuu cosmogony
Director
Sophia Al-Maria
Production Country
ColombiaProduction Year
2017Duration
4 mins
The Future Was Desert (Part II)
‘Deserts possess a particular magic, since they have exhausted their own futures, and are thus free of time’ —J.G. Ballard
Director
Sophia Al-Maria
Production Country
United KingdomProduction Year
2016Duration
5 mins