One of the strange indicators in Iraqi culture today is the graduation of dozens of cinema and cinematic art enthusiasts from the film departments in academies and technical institutes every year. Yet, they are taken aback by the harsh reality that there is no real cinema production, and the harsher fact that there are no movie houses in the country.
Bashar Kazem, a young film director and critic, told Al-Monitor, “The number of graduates from the cinema departments in Iraq ranges between 60-70 students per year.” However, “The number of graduates does not necessarily produce any sort of movement in [Iraqi] cinema. The methodology used in the program is classical and academic, lacking the practical components or measures to keep up with technological developments. Thus, there is a lack of technical personnel capable of making a film.”