ten arab filmmakers provides an up-to-date overview of the best of arab cinema, offering studies of leading directors and in-depth analyses of their most important films. the filmmakers profiled here represent principal national cinemas of the arab world--algeria, egypt, lebanon, morocco, palestine, and syria. although they have produced many of the region's most-renowned films and gained recognition at major international festivals, with few exceptions these filmmakers have received little critical attention. all ten share a concern with giving image and voice to people struggling against authoritarian regimes, patriarchal traditions, or religious fundamentalism--theirs is a cin ma engag .

the featured directors are daoud abd el-sayed, merzak allouache, nabil ayouch, youssef chahine, mohamed chouikh, michel khleifi, nabil maleh, yousry nasrallah, jocelyne saab, and elia suleiman.