Broken Record is a poetic journey through Iraq in search of an Iraqi/Turkman song, which the filmmaker
Parine Jaddo’s mother recorded with her brothers in 1960. Though the filmmaker knows the melody, she no
longer remembers the lyrics and her curiosity takes her to Iraq in search of it, giving rare insight to Iraq’s rich
musical culture and heritage, much of which has been burnt and lost. An underlying motivator of the film is the
love of music and culture: unveiling the amazing youth and those who remain true & dedicated and continue
to grow out of a devastated soil of a war ridden and divided Iraq.
The loss of her mother sparked Parine Jaddo to find the words of a song she so often heard as a child. A singer
in the 1960s, Jaddo’s mother recorded the song with her brothers at the radio station of Baghdad. The search
takes us around a country that has seen much change since those days, and we learn of the rich musical heritage
of Iraqi Maqam, which has been mostly burned. While searching, we also learn about rare, long forgotten jewels
of the Maqam genre, such as the Maqam of Mulla Taha, which was recorded in 1928.
From a trip around the country to searching the basement of her family home, Jaddo takes us on an intimate
journey looking for what remains of her mother’s voice. Being a personal story, the documentary has Jaddo
herself as a central figure, uniting the various family members who also take to the screen, from her father
to uncles and aunts, alongside other individuals who become relevant to the search. The film is a tribute to
the filmmaker’s mother.
*Broken Record has received funding from the Arab Fund for Art & Culture AFAC, and the SANAD Fund (Abu Dhabi)
in the 1960s, Jaddo’s mother recorded the song with her brothers at the radio station of Baghdad. The search
takes us around a country that has seen much change since those days, and we learn of the rich musical heritage
of Iraqi Maqam, which has been mostly burned. While searching, we also learn about rare, long forgotten jewels
of the Maqam genre, such as the Maqam of Mulla Taha, which was recorded in 1928.
journey looking for what remains of her mother’s voice. Being a personal story, the documentary has Jaddo
herself as a central figure, uniting the various family members who also take to the screen, from her father
to uncles and aunts, alongside other individuals who become relevant to the search. The film is a tribute to
the filmmaker’s mother.
Festivals
DOK Leipzig 2013
Duhok International Film Festival 2013
Mumbai International Women’s Film Festival 2013
Tripoli International Film Festival, Cultural Resistance, 2014
Al Film Berlin, Arab Film Festival Germany, 2014
Screenings
Beirut, Lebanon 2013- Ashkal Alwan, Homeworks6
Reel Iraq, Edinburg & London, 2013
Alwan for the Art, NYC- 2014
Wellesley College, Boston – 2014
Private Screening at Dawawine, Beirut – 2014
Press
Broken Record, review 24-06-2013
A Broken Record Tells the Story of Iraq
Making Of- Stills
