NYU’s Daily Student Newspaper
washington square news Vol. 40, No. 24
tuesday, February 28, 2012
nyunews.com
Men’s hoops gets tourney invite
Protesters rally for ethical divestment
By John Axelrod
By Justina Lee
The conference room on the ground level of the Coles Sports Center changed from silence to pure chaos the instant “NYU” appeared on the screen during the Division III NCAA Tournament Selection Show. The NYU men’s basketball team was seated around the table watching intently, hoping their bubble would not burst. They learned around noon that they are part of the field of 62 teams that will compete for a National Championship. The Violets will face Misericordia University in the first round at home on Thursday night at 7 p.m. The winner of that game travels to Amherst College to face the Lord Jeffs on Saturday. “I’m very excited and happy for all of our players, coaches and managers,” head coach Joe Nesci said. “Our guys did a great job this year and won a tough game on the road to get in.”
R NCAA continued on PG. 8
JONATHAN TAN/WSN
Members of the NYU community protested against NYU’s financial services company yesterday.
Over two dozen students and faculty gathered in Washington Square Park yesterday to protest against the financial services company that manages NYU employees’ retirement savings. These members of the NYU community called on the company to stop relying on corporations that profit from Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories. NYU Students for Justice in Palestine drafted an open letter to the university in January about the use of the financial services company TIAA-CREF. The company, which holds around $440 billion in assets, manages its employees’ retirement savings. Its retirement portfolio funds invest in approximately 30 companies that profit from the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories. “The campaign started around a year ago,” Glen Pine, organizer
R PROTEST continued on PG. 3
‘This is Not a Film’ expands cinematic boundaries By Stefan Melnyk
The story behind “This Is Not A Film” is almost as intriguing as the work itself. Made in secret and smuggled to Cannes in a cake, this documentary by Jafar Panahi and Mojtaba Mirtahmasb would not have been made at all if the Iranian government had been able to enforce its will. In 2010, Panahi was imprisoned and banned from making films for 20 years because he supported the opposition party in the 2009 elections. That election resulted in President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad controversially clinging to power using transparently falsified results. For many long minutes in “Film,” Panahi can be seen moving restlessly around his apartment, going through the necessary motions but obviously straining at the leash. He convinces his friend Mirtahmasb to film him, expressing himself in the only way he can. The Iranian government has banned him from directing or giving interviews but not from serving as an actor, so he acts out scenes in his living room from a script that he was banned from filming. But what makes this performance feel so genuine is that it is not a calculated act of defiance but rather a cry for help. After only a short while, Panahi breaks off, admitting ruefully that the loophole he is exploiting is irrelevant. He knows that the Iranian government has a lengthy
record of ignoring laws and breaking agreements. This sense of fear and futility feels even more palpable later on, when Mirtahmasb has to leave to check on his family. Panahi, with increasing desperation, stalls him with questions, jokes, anecdotes — anything to delay his loneliness. This aching humanity evokes a strong sense of the title’s accuracy. It is not a film — at least not one like any other film ever made. There is no narration, no substantial editing, no artificial arrangement of elements and almost no concern for aesthetics. The message that emerges from the words and images reveals itself as if by accident. So little was recorded, but this very fact speaks volumes. Nearly all of the video is shot in Panahi’s apartment, but this confinement only helps to convey his feeling of restraint. “This Is Not A Film” is one of those works that reminds us that, no matter how much we may complain about our own problems, we still enjoy the luxury of living in a country in which free speech and open dissent are accepted. For Panahi and millions like him, this is not a luxury that their governments have seen fit to grant them. It may not be a film, but as a plea it is just as powerful as one. Stefan Melnyk is film editor. Email him at smelnyk@nyunews.com.
VIA THISISNOTAFILM.NET
Filmmaker Jafar Panahi was imprisoned by the Iranian government in 2010.