The Sheik and I Page #10

STARTING LIKE THAT DAY.

AND I WAS LIKE WE GO TO GO TO THE PRESS.

WE GOT TO TELL PEOPLE

THAT THESE GUYS AT THE BIENNIAL,

LIKE THEY'RE CENSORING WORK.

LIKE THEY CLAIM TO BE NOT DOING

IT AND ACTUALLY THE NEW YORK

TIMES CARRIED AN ARTICLE

ABOUT THE SHARJAH

BIENNIAL LIKE THE WEEK

BEFORE AND JACK PERSEKIAN

WAS QUOTED AS SAYING,

"THERE HAS BEEN NEVER

THERE HAS NEVER BEEN ANY

PRESSURE TO CONFORM

TO A PREFERRED PERSPECTIVE

OR TOW A PROPAGANDA LINE."

HE SAID THAT IN PRIN IN NEW YORK TIMES A WEEK

BEFORE HE BANNED MY MOVIE.

SO, I WENT TO THE PRESS

AND THE NEW YORK TIMES WROTE

AN ARTICLE AND THE SHARJAH

FOUNDATION WAS FURIOUS.

AND THEN A FEW DAYS LATER,

AN ARTICLE COMES OU

IN THE LOCAL U.A.E

NEWSPAPER:

AND JACK PERSEKIAN

WAS QUOTED AS SAYING...

"THERE WERE PARTS

THAT WERE EXPLOITATIVE OF SOME

INDIAN MINORS WHO HANG

AROUND THE MUSEUM."

BY ACCUSING YOU OF CHILD

EXPLOITATION, THEY'VE COMMITTED

AN ACTIONABLE DEFAMATION

IN THE UNITED STATES.

AND I COULD GE JURISDICTION OVER THEM.

OH, ONE OTHER THING HAPPENED

THAT I FORGOT TO MENTION.

JACK PERSEKIAN:

WAS FIRED BY THE SHEIK.

AT FIRST I THOUGHT, "OH

HE WAS FIRED BECAUSE HE BANNED

MY FILM," YOU KNOW,

LIKE THAT'S WHY HE

WAS FIRED, BUT NO.

HE WAS FIRED BECAUSE HE

FAILED TO BAN ANOTHER WORK

OF ART WHICH WAS ALSO

ACCUSED OF BLASPHEMY

AND INSTEAD OF DEFENDING

THE PIECE AND SAYING

IT'S OUTRAGEOUS THAT THEY'RE

BANNING WORK, HE SAID...

"IT WAS FOOLISH OF ME.

I DIDN'T READ ALL

THE FINE PRINT IN IT ON SOME

OF THE CONTENT I MUS WAS OBJECTIONABLE.

SO, NOW RASHA AND HAIG,

WHO HAD DEFENDED JACK PERSEKIAN

BANNING MY FILM, THEY PROTES JACK PERSEKIAN'S FIRING,

AND THEY HAVE A MISSION

STATEMENT SAYING,

"THE MISSION OF ART IS TO DEFEND

FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION,"

AND THEY START A PETITION

TO BOYCOTT THE SHARJAH BIENNIAL,

THE SHARJAH ART FOUNDATION

AND ALL ART INSTITUTIONS

IN THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES.

THE PETITION LIKE STARTS GETTING

THOUSANDS OF SIGNATURES

FROM LIKE ALL THESE

ARTISTS AND STUFF,

AND NO ONE EVER MENTIONED

MY FILM, LIKE THEY NEVER SAID,

"WE REGRET THEY INCLUDED

MY FILM IN THE BAN."

THEY JUST LIKE...

I MEAN PART OF ME WAS THRILLED

THAT THEY WERE LIKE BOYCOTTING

THE BIENNIAL, BUT PART OF ME

WAS LIKE, "WHAT HYPOCRITES."

IT'S LIKE COME ON.

YOU GUYS WERE A PART OF THIS.

WHY DIDN'T YOU AT LEAS ADMIT THAT?"

I'D LIKE TO TRY

TO GET A SETTLEMEN

BASED ON SHOWING THE SERIOUSNESS

OF THEIR MISCONDUC

WITHOUT BLOWING UP

THE REAL OBJECTIVES,

WHICH ARE FOR YOU TO MAKE

YOUR FILM, AND FOR YOU TO USE

ALL OF WHAT'S HAPPENED.

IT MAY BE THAT THEY THINK

WE'RE BLUFFING.

UH-HUH.

AND I DON'T KNOW YOU VERY WELL

AND PERHAPS YOU DON'T KNOW

ME VERY WELL, BUT I DON'T BLUFF.

UH-HUH, I DON' SENSE THAT YOU DO.

BUT SO ANYWAY HE THREATENED

TO SEIZE THEIR ASSETS

BECAUSE WHAT THEY DID

WAS ILLEGAL:

AND IT WAS IN THEIR

INTEREST TO SETTLE.

SO, UM, THEN THE

LAWYER PERSUADED THE

SHARJAH ART FOUNDATION FINALLY

TO SIGN AN AGREEMENT SAYING

NOT ONLY DID I HAVE THE RIGHT TO

SHOW THE FILM WHEREVER I WANTED,

EXCEPT THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

WHERE THEY WOULDN'T SHOW IT,

BUT PART OF THE DEAL

WAS THAT NOBODY WOULD GE

IN TROUBLE BASICALLY,

LIKE I DON'T WANT PEOPLE

LOSING THEIR JOBS AND I DON' WANT PEOPLE GETTING ARRESTED.

I DON'T KNOW.

I DON'T WANT ANY TROUBLE.

THE MUTUAL GENERAL RELEASE

THAT WAS PROVIDED

BY THE GOVERNMENT WOULD ALLOW

YOU TO SHOW THE FILM AND NO

SUBJECT PEOPLE WHO APPEARED

IN THE FILM TO LIABILITY.

THAT WAS GREAT, COLIN.

GOOD JOB ON THE:

MOVING BLOODSTREAM.

OKAY, WE GOT IT.

COOL.

YEAH.

WE'RE DONE, CAMILLE.

I'M ALMOST FINISHED.

RIGHT HERE.

WE'RE SHOOTING A MOVIE.

OH MY TOUGH GUY.

ARE YOU OKAY?

[MUMBLES]

YOU WOKE UP?

YEAH. YEAH. YOU WOKE UP.

I THINK IT'S PROBABLY IN YOUR

BED. SHOULD WE GO LOOK FOR IT?

YEAH? OKAY.

SHOULD WE SAY GOOD NIGHT?

SHOULD WE SAY GOODBYE

TO THE CAMERA?

SEE THE CAMERA OVER HERE?

SEE THE CAMERA?

SEE THE CAMERA RIGHT THERE?

IT'S FILMING.

HERE WE GO.

READY? HERE WE GO.

DO YOU WANT TO GO BACK

TO YOUR ROOM? CRANKY?

OKAY.

BUT THAT'S THE STORY.

OOPS.

I ALMOST DROPPED THIS.

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