The Evelyn Meyers '37 Endowed Lecture Fund exposes Goucher students and the surrounding community to French language and culture through the presentation of a lecture or related event. Attendees witness first-hand representations of French lifestyles and experience Goucher's tradition of "Education without Boundaries".
The second annual Evelyn Meyers '37 French Lecture featured Tunisia's first female filmmaker Selma Baccar and her most recent film "Khochkhach (The Flower of Oblivion)". Influenced by amateur cinema in the 1960's, Baccar launched her career with her first full-length film "Fatma 75" in 1977. The film was banned until 2006 due to the portrayal of controversial issues including equality for women; topics that reappear in many of her other films.
"Khochkhach" was based on the true story of Baccar's great-aunt Zakia in the early 1940's in Tunis. Zakia struggles with the pain of childbirth and the strain of a gay husband, and so turns to Khochkhach (poppy tea) as an escape from her mental anguish. The story follows Zakia as she tried to hide her addiction from her family, especially her beloved daughter.
When admitted to an asylum, she finds solace in the other patients. With the help of a man, Zakia is able to remember her story and finally move on with her life. Baccar emphasized Zakia overcoming her addiction by adding that "the cure comes from within yourself".
Baccar focused on the true identity of the characters which created passion and intensity in the film. Despite having a budget limited to about 500,000 dollars, she said, through the help of a translator, that "afforded the luxury of having ten actors come with [her] to the asylum for a month, observing the patients. Each actor was following one piece of research, and had some time to spend with the therapist in order to be able to create a story behind a character."
The actors' dedication to the characters shone through to draw the audience into Zakia's story. The audience's applause at the end of the film displayed their awe and appreciation. The controversial issues touched on in the film opened the eyes of audience members to Tunisian culture. Allie Moss '12 said "I really liked how she addressed the issues of homosexuality because I didn't realize how suppressed that was, but it seemed like that was a really revolutionary thing to do". The film shows that these controversial issues are world-wide, even though they are often avoided.
Dan St. Ours '11 agreed by saying "I think all the problems she addressed in the film are universal and that's why I loved the film o much, because they were universal problems that people should address and people should talk about".
St. Ours added that "during the film I can say that my heart never stopped beating at the same pace. It was just immensely, immensely beautiful and it exceeded all of my expectations".
Baccar's film and presentation exposed the controversial issues of Tunisian culture and exemplified the purpose of the Evelyn Meyers '37 Endowed Lecture Fund.
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