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Tag: film

Episode 178 [in English]: The return of Rolla Selbak!

Rolla Selbak is a Palestinian-American filmmaker, writer, and director whose work has pushed boundaries of representation for Arab, Muslim, and queer characters. We were so excited to have her back to catch up since her first episode, right at the beginning of the pandemic.

Rolla’s recent projects include the short film “Finjan” (which you can watch online now) and “Ya Bint”, a dramedy TV series co-created with Dina Shihabi (currently in the works).

Rolla discussed the new experience of writing for a producer’s studio after working in the indie scene and adapting to expectations about what mainstream audiences might want to see. We also talked about Rolla’s recent wedding, ad targeting and censorship on social media, how we watch forms of art that we work in, Carol Baskin and more!

IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1672060/

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Episode 163 [in English]: Breaking Fast

It was such a pleasure talking to Mike Mosallam, creator of the film ‘Breaking Fast’ (on Hulu).  The film follows a gay Muslim man looking for love during Ramadan (the film is best described as a Ramadan rom-com).  (See more here:  https://www.breakingfastfilm.com)
We discussed the importance of media portrayal of the fun and sense of humor shared among Arabs, as this is not often the side of the community that gets focused on.  We talked about the ways Arab actors are often pigeonholed in media, and how Mike’s film serves to counteract that while still tackling meaningful topics.
We also brought up the ways we have been conditioned to compartmentalize our identities as queer Arabs, and the process of unlearning that.  Please check out the film and Mike’s future projects!

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Essay referenced in episode:

https://www.macdowell.org/news/why-macdowell-now-do-not-disappear-the-words?fbclid=IwAR0A8HjO7GrXHlHyzS065vsvs3h7rhGwuC6Drn1x0jrdeBlekKLfyu0nyFs

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