Film Programme
The Philosopher
fiction
France, 2010, 16'
Director: Abdulla Alkaabi
Producer: Cyril Deleye
Director of photography: Gil Pannetier
Writer: Abdulla Alkaabi
Composer: Gil Pannetier
Editor: Isabelle Manquillet
Synopsis: It is 2010. Baggio was a successful footballer, martial artist and a pianist living the high life with his fame and fortune. Unfortunately, all of the perfections in his life do not help satisfy that urging need in Baggio to do ‘something’ with his life. So he embarks on himself to drop all his titles and adopt a new title as a – philosopher! The first step in doing so, he decides to strip himself of all material objects he owns in order to attain a clear, pure mind for thought and philosophy. He rents a van, empties his apartment, and lays his belongings on the street for the common public to take as they please without cost. Baggio strips naked, folds his clothes and walks into the park for refuge and sanctuary to find his inner peace for thought. After a couple of hours, cold and hungry, he finds himself back to where he left his belongings and rented van, surprised that none of his belongings have been touched by anyone! After failed attempts to convince passerbys to take away his freewill, he stumbles across Leo, a lonely recovering alcoholic who agrees to take Baggio’s freewill and allows him to sleep at his one bedroom apartment. At first excited about the proposition, Baggio is surprised with Leo’s carefree attitude. Leo asks him to watch TV everyday, and neglects Baggio. Frustrated after a couple of weeks, Baggio confronts Leo and tells him he is bored and lashes into a condescending speech, labeling Leo as a loser just to be surprised that Leo actually had a philosophy behind all of this, which is, showing Baggio that giving up your freewill is not so easy after all and wanted him to get a feel for what he has signed up for. After some months, Baggio and Leo start to form some kind of a friendship, where they lead a simple life and Baggio finds his inner happiness not as a philosopher but as a friend to a person whom he grew so fond of, who in his past life wouldn’t have had the chance to socialize with.
Director: Abdulla Alkaabi
Abdulla Alkaabi was born in the UAE in 1986. He presented Green Light Charity, on Dubai TV in 2005, then he became a main reporter on Male Box. In 2008, Abdulla presented Tawasol on Sama Dubai. He moved to Paris in 2009 to pursue his studies in Filmmaking and a career in cinema.