Original news, features, opinions from Chicago to Jerusalem
Now that the Oscars are over, can we have a real discussion about the absence of fairness, the racism, stereotypes and bias that consumes the Hollywood movie industry? And to be honest, African Americans have a lot to complain about here in America over the past 400 years for sure, but they really are the last…
Read More “Oscars debate still bothers me, even though it’s done” »
Palestinian groups calls on Oscar nominees at this year’s Academy Awards to reject the “Israel propaganda trip” valued at over $50,000 that is included in this year’s “swag bags” Palestinian human rights activists are calling on Oscar nominees not to accept travel vouchers supplied by the Israeli government as part of the gift bag that…
Read More “Palestinians urge Oscars reject Israel trip swag” »
African Americans left out of this year’s Oscar Nominations have again complained, but the focus seems not to be on diversity but rather on African Americans. Minority minorities and other people of color left out of the movie industry are being left out in this debate, too. The issue of the Hollywood bias isn’t about…
An Arabic language film, Theeb, was nominated for an Oscar by the Academy Awards on Thursday. The film is the story about a young boy who helps a British soldier during World War I. Theeb, the Arabic language story of a young bedouin boy who embarks on a journey through the Ottoman Empire during World…
Read More “Theeb, Arabic language film, nominated for Oscar” »
New documentary The Mosque in Morgantown explores challenges facing Islam Brittany Huckabee’s documentary The Mosque in Morgantown airs on Tuesday, February 16, 2016, at 8 p.m. on WORLD Channel (check local listings), as part of the fourth season of America Reframed, public media’s newest documentary series hosted by Natasha Del Toro. The film is part of…
Read More ““The Mosque in Morgantown” explores hurdles facing Islam” »
Usama Alshaibi’s documentary “American Arab” has its national television premiere on Tuesday, February 9, 2016, at 8 p.m. on WORLD Channel (check local listings), as part of the fourth season of AMERICA REFRAMED, public media’s newest documentary series. The film, made through Chicago production collective Kartemquin Films (makers of THE INTERRUPTERS), will be available for free streaming on www.worldchannel.org starting February…
Read More “New film explores challenges facing American Arabs” »
Jordan nominates “Theeb” for 88th Academy Awards Award–winning Jordanian feature narrative “Theeb”, by director Naji Abu Nowar, is Jordan’s official submission for the Best Foreign Language Film category of the 88th Academy Awards, the Royal Film Commission (RFC) announced recently. The selection was made by a committee of Jordanian artists and craftspeople involved in the…
Read More “Jordan nominates “Theeb” for 88th Academy Awards” »
In the award-winning documentary The Wanted 18, directors Amer Shomali and Paul Cowan bring to life a remarkable story of nonviolent resistance during the First Intifada. The animated documentary speaks to the reality of the Israeli occupation on Palestinian civilian life. You need to support it By Ray Hanania The Wanted 18 recreates an astonishing true…
Read More “Palestinian Film “The Wanted 18” speaks to Israeli occupation” »
Khalil Gibran is one of America’s best known American Arabs. The acclaimed poet’s book, The Prophet, first published in 1923, has sold more than 100 million copies and has been an inspiration to American Arab writers for generations. On Friday, August 7, 2015, the animated film will open at limited engagements throughout the country with…
Read More “Khalil Gibran movie opens with not enough publicity” »
Matt VanDyke, a timid 26-year-old with obsessive-compulsive disorder, left home in Baltimore in 2006 for what he called a “crash course in manhood.” He bought a motorcycle, a video camera and set-off to film himself on a multi-year, 35,000-mile odyssey through North Africa and the Middle East. When revolution broke out in Libya, he joined…
Read More “American man joins Libyan revolution in ‘Point and Shoot’” »
Omar Sharif was one of the first Arab actors to appear in the biased anti-Arab arena of Hollywood. His talent took him past the bigotry that has denied Arabs roles in major motion pictures, excluded pro-Arab themes and narratives from Hollywood movies, and marginalized Arabs to the sidelines of a biased movie industry. But his legacy…
Read More “Obituary: Omar Sharif, 1932-2015, the back story” »
Malik B. Ali and his late brother Waleed B. Ali launched a business Maljack Productions that began by acquiring the rights to old films abandoned by the movie industry, but in recent years has now began producing its own films. Now known as MPI, the company owns the rights to 2,500 films including the classic…