CONTENTS

Foreword

I. Introduction

II. Jesus

1. A Short History

1.1. The First Films

1.2. The Silent Films

1.3. Later Films

2. Analysis

3. Historical Background

3.1. The Visual Representation of Jesus

3.2. The Ideological Background

3.3. Opposition to the Depiction of Jesus

3.4. The Issue of Anti-Semitism

4. Many Images, One Jesus

III. Rama

1. The Films

1.1. A Short Introduction

1.2. The Era of Silent Film

1.3. The Era of Sound

1.4. Analysis

2. Historical Background

2.1. The Visual Representation of Rama

2.2. The Ideological Background

3. The Importance of Seeing in Hinduism

4. The Modern Ramayana Kathas

IV. Buddha

1. The Films

1.1. The Era of Silent Film

1.2. The Era of Sound

1.3. Analysis

2. Historical Background

2.1. The Visual Representation of Buddha

2.2. The Ideological Background

3. Resistance to Depicting Buddha in Film

4. Thanks to the Hindus and the Westerners

V. Muhammad

1. The Film Itself

2. The Film's Relationship to the Muslim Tradition

3. Conclusions

VI. Jesus Restyled

1. The Indian Jesus Films

1.1. The History of the Indian Jesus Films

1.2. The Content of the Indian Jesus Films

1.3. The Background of the Indian Jesus Films

1.4. The Indian Character of the Indian Jesus Films

1.5. Preliminary Conclusions

2. The South African Jesus Film

2.1. Introduction

2.2. Content

2.3. Interpretation

3. The Jesus Film of the African-American Christians

3.1. Introduction

3.2. Content

3.3. Retrospection

4. Siding with Powerless and Victims of Discrimination

VII. Some Conclusions

1. Between Tradition and Creativity: The Importance of the Audience

2. Film, Narration Modes and Subjectivity

3. The Positions of the Actors Playing the Sacred Figures

4. The Sacred Environment

5. Outside the Cultural Context of the Religions

6. Between the Void, Images and Films: Again a Key Position for the Audience

Filmography

Bibliography

Videos

Websites

Index