About
One day, an Egyptian friend gave Danish anthropologist Christian Suhr a piece of advice: Stop focusing on all the darkness in the world, and look at the light instead. Tired of studying the tensions between Muslim and Western world views in Europe, Suhr began to study religious experiences of light in post-revolutionary Egypt.
Light Upon Light explores how practitioners of Sufi Islam search for light at a time of deep darkness and political turmoil. Throughout his journey in Cairo and back home in Denmark, Suhr engages in conversations with friends and acquaintances while also observing and participating in rituals that open the hearts of practitioners to the light of God. While speaking to universal human concerns, the film offers a nuanced portrayal of religious practices as the filmmaker seeks to understand the experiences of those he meets as well as his own experience of divine light.
Reviews
“Danish director and anthropologist Christian Suhr’s feature documentary offers a respectful yet compelling peek into the surprisingly diverse communities of Sufi worshippers within the Islamic tradition of Egypt.” – Deborah Young, Film Verdict
“It is groundbreaking that a Danish director (Christian Suhr) is part of an Arab production. It is a symptom of a greater transformation in the cultural power relationship between Western and Arab documentary filmmaking – a relationship that historically has been very unequal. For long there has been a hegemony, where Western production companies have led the productions of documentaries also from the Arab world. Here the hegemony is turned upside down.” — Rasmus Steen, Head of Documentary, IMS
Film Links
Filmmaker's WebsiteCredits
Camera
Christian Suhr
Amira Mortada
Muhammad Mustapha
Script and Editing
Muhammad Mustapha
Christian Suhr
Main Cast
Sonia Hassan
Aya El Hosseiny
Maher al-Sharnouby
Magda Habshey