"Oasis 7" is the working title of a new, full-length motion picture scripted by Ahmed Nasir Kiyam and director Edreace Purmul and produced by the San Diego based, Muslim-owned film company Scimitar Productions. Laden with symbolism and heavy social relevance reminiscent of a Spike Lee flick, Oasis 7 is a gritty look at the life of an urban youth, ( played by African American actor Chris Metcalf) fighting the past, uncertain of the future and propelled by fate through an odyssey of emotions, violence and self-discovery. Executive Producer Halim Mostafa Gabori clearly hopes that audiences will take a similar path of discovery, leaving theatres entertained but also unsettled.
‘We’re going to break some stereotypes," says Gabori, "Usually Hollywood shows Muslims as being emotional, rude, ignorant—everything that is opposite of peaceful. This film will show Muslims being intelligent, knowledgeable—but also capable of making mistakes."
Gabori knows firsthand how media can shape perspectives. Born in Kurdistan, he came to the US in 1978, studied film and theatre at the Milwaukee Area Technical College and has himself appeared as a ‘good Arab" in movies such as "Three Kings" alongside George Clooney and Ice Cube and also a ‘bad Arab’ in "Peor que los Peros" directed by Miguel A. Saldana.
"I have always wanted to see the beauty of Islam portrayed in the cinema," says Gabori. "For some reason, we’ve had this notion that movies are associated with sin. But movies and television are not evil in themselves. If you make films that explain the reality and show the morality of people, it is a good thing."
Gabori adds that through the film he hopes to "show the greatness of Islam as well as the weaknesses of some Muslims." Speaking about the responsibility of Muslims, he says, "We’ve been mistreated in the media, but we also want to hold Muslims accountable for not teaching others about their religion and their culture."
A key component of the script is highlighting the current national climate through the prism of the African American experience, "African Americans, have dealt with the legacy of slavery and prejudice so they know what Muslims feel like being under so much pressure today," remarks Gabori.
Scimitar Productions was started by Gabori for just this purpose, funded solely out of his own pocket and the investment of two friends. The concept for the film took roughly six months to flesh out. Filming on location in San Diego began in January of this year. The cast is entirely made up of local Muslim and non-Muslim talent.
Gabori is tight-lipped about the plot, speaking only in the most general terms "It’s about an African American Student who is running into difficulties with a college project and one of his teachers helps him, knowing his background and his capability to succeed. She helps him overcome these obstacles by encouraging a change in direction--and that’s how the story begins."
There has been a recent trend of Muslims branching out into the once taboo world of western media. Production companies such as Ummah Films and ThreeWire Productions are on the vanguard of this rush to present the human side of Islam and Muslims through video and film projects. Perhaps the most famous production is the hit Canadian TV sitcom "Little Mosque On the Prairie", created by Zarqa Nawaz. "Little Mosque" uses comedy to highlight human commonalities as Muslims characters establish a community in the Canadian interior. So popular is the show that it may soon be coming to the US.
The Muslim Public Affairs Council or MPAC has recently opened a Hollywood Bureau to act as a watch dog and Islamic liaison to the big movie studios. MPAC reports that there are 30 separate film projects in current development by the major film companies that have decidedly anti-Islamic or anti-Arab thrust.
"I think that when we look at the Jews, for example, they have people like Jon Stewart who are comedians and who talk about Jews as being ‘regular folks,’" says Ahmad Ibrahim, president of the San Diego chapter of MPAC says. "Any attempt to bring about a positive example, a humanistic example of us is much needed."
MPAC San Diego has even scheduled a community workshop in June on "How to make your own TV Show".
According to Gabori, his movie is directed to both Muslims and non-Muslims. His hope is that "when Muslims see it they’ll say ‘Wow, was I doing that?’ When non-Muslims see it they’ll say, ‘Oh, I didn’t now that Muslims believed in that." He also encourages potential Muslim writers to contact him with script ideas for future productions.
The film is scheduled to be ready for the Film Festival circuit by December. International television broadcasting companies have already shown interest in the film as has Bridges TV, the US based all-Muslim television network.
"If we are accepted by the film festivals, like Sundance, we believe we can receive recognition and that we’ll also be approached by some of the big independent film distributors."
But are Western audiences ready for Muslims-as-human’s?
"There are a few current productions that are trying to touch on this topic," says Neil Kendricks, freelance film critic for the San Diego Union Tribune, member of the San Diego County Film Critics Society and film curator at the San Diego Museum of Photographic Arts. "One of the main writers of the TV show "Sleeper Cell" was Muslim and he has taken upon himself to bring a more humanistic point of view of why someone would gravitate to a terrorist cell. There are many prominent authors dealing with the same subject. It’s in the public consciousness right now and people are thinking about it so it’s actually a perfect time to put out a picture like this," he says. "But ultimately it’s about ‘Is the film good?’"
New writers can reach Scimitar Productions at
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