Re-membering through film practices: Diasporic film culture and identity beyond the ‘homeland’

Abstract

Abstract Contributing to the expanding field of cinema and diaspora studies, this article reports on a critical media ethnographic study of the Moroccan diaspora in Antwerp (Belgium) and its engagements with ‘homeland’ films. Unlike most previous studies on diasporic film culture, this case focuses on how a diasporic group deals with a relatively small homeland film industry. It was found that Moroccan films are especially linked to memories and nostalgia as well as to active social positionings vis-à-vis various socio-cultural formations. Hence, the notion of ‘re-membering’ is introduced to capture this dual engagement with homeland films. Further, the relative marginal position of ‘homeland’ films among the diaspora is used to reflect on the centrality of national homelands in conceptualizations of diaspora. Based on this study, sub- and supranational as well as local and religious belongings are highlighted as crucial markers of diasporic identity.