Category: media

rochester teen film festival 2015

a couple of days ago, i presented two awards at the rochester teen film festival. one for “best social justice message” – it was awarded to east high school kids who made a film about volunteering by focusing on the homeless in rochester. they interviewed sister grace and shot the homeless tent city which was later bulldozed by the city of rochester, in the middle of a harsh winter (in dec last year). it’s always riveting to see young people take ownership of their community. i was truly moved by these kids, many of whom come from tough neighborhoods, and their desire to improve the world around them.

i also presented the award for “best animation”. i talked about how my first reaction to the piece was that it looked more like video art produced by an artist rather than straightforward animation. set to verdi’s requiem, it’s full of symbolism, movement, panache, and color – color which like the music that accompanies it, swells into a stunningly grand and expressive register. verdi’s requiem is often called an opera in disguise or a requiem on steroids. to be able to visually conceptualize verdi’s larger-than-life, dynamic music, what better medium than animation and what better language than the abstract language of dreams and symbolic imagery. river melcher’s “a dream of evolution” brought all these elements together with incredible artistry. check it out.

God Only Knows

i know that there are serious problems with the bbc and i take issue with the corporatization of music and other forms of art, but there’s something about this that i enjoy.

why the greek financial crisis matters

“if europe is to overcome islamist terror, it needs to fight for the values it holds dear” says paul mason. and what values would that be? colonial theft and genocide? look, i’m all for people power, democracy and showing the finger to global loan sharks but trying to make the greek-german dustup about europe being able to stand up to the islamic state (cuz greece is so close to turkey and the muslims might be coming any minute) is such base fear-mongering and racist tripe. i hope that one day we will be able to see the world thru a more evolved lens than the war on terror and its rancid corollaries.

my essay in post magazine

a while back i was approached by post magazine for an interview about my work (thx carlie fishgold), mostly my film “the muslims i know.” once they learned more about my entire body of work, which includes art, film, photography and writing, they decided to let me write my own story, in my own words. it was an incredibly empowering editorial decision. it moved me immensely. i sent them two essays: one based on what i thought they were looking for (being a filmmaker in rochester) and then another one which was more loosely autobiographical and tackled my “muslimness.” they chose the second essay. it was published in the july/august issue of post magazine, with some wonderful photography by betsy traub. here are some pictures. more about post magazine here.

post mag 1

post mag 2

post mag 3

post mag 4

post mag 5

Nina Simone: ‘Are you ready to burn buildings?’

cannot wait to see this. on netflix starting june 26.
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From singing the soundtrack to the civil rights movement to living in self-imposed exile in Liberia, Nina Simone never chose the easy path. As a new documentary is released, Dorian Lynskey looks at the angry, lonely life of a soul legend. More here.

‘A Thin Wall’ Puts People’s Stories at Forefront of History

Derek Scarlino and Stephanie Inserra both traveled from Utica to Rochester to attend the premiere of A THIN WALL for the Love and Rage Media Collective. Here is their wonderful review!
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Through its personal stories, artwork and animation, Mara Ahmed’s A Thin Wall is a moving, thoughtful addition to the stories of refugees and immigrant communities throughout the melting pot of the United States. It provides a refreshing, organic look at history how it was lived by its actual witnesses as opposed to being told in a more traditional fashion by third parties focusing exclusively on notable social movements and leaders. More here.

greentopia events at urban forest cinema

march 19, 2015: went to the urban forest cinema yesterday along with my friend sarita for a series of greentopia events. the discussion on THE INTERSECTION OF DOCUMENTARY FILM & JOURNALISM (something i know something about) would have been lackluster if it hadn’t been for carvin eisen who challenged mainstream media in the presence of mainstream media (yay chomsky!). “green drinks” was fun and provided an opportunity to connect with people. the MULTI-MEDIA MUSIC AND FILM EVENT “consigned to oblivion” was a great idea (live music accompanied by spoken word and film) but didn’t pan out for me. however, i loved all the locally produced short films which told the stories of wonderful activists and communities doing wonderful things in rochester. these included: Bread For All, The Sweet Bee, and Food For Thought: Seedfolk Stories. and let’s not forget the location – love high falls.

global citizenship conference

march 10, 2015: just taught a class at nazareth college on “religion in media and popular culture.” i chose to focus on islam as it’s particularly distorted by the use of selected images in mainstream media, which are then repeated ad nauseam. this was part of the global citizenship conference at naz which is meant for high school students. i introduced myself as an activist filmmaker and asked them the meaning of activism. they were more than familiar with the concept. one of the girls was involved with an anti-capitalist/pro-social justice group and another with indigenous peoples’ rights. they understood the meaning of media oligarchy and therefore the importance of independent filmmaking. we listened to edward said explaining orientalism, we looked at images of muslims as they appear mostly in the media and then i showed them images of the narcycist and shadia mansour. i showed them beautiful photographs from iraqi photojournalist tamara abdul hadi’s “picture an arab man” and stills from “the speed sisters.” we also discussed “american sniper” and the problematics of seeing the iraqi people (their villages and neighborhoods and streets and children) thru the scope of a loaded gun (what a perfect metaphor for racism). finally, we talked about the recent wave of killings in chapel hill, kansas city, kentucky and dallas. i wanted to end on a serious note, to show the students how the consequences of stereotyping are v real and tragic. we concluded the class with chimamanda adichie’s ted talk about “the danger of a single story.” i teach this class every year and every time i’m amazed by the responses i get from students – they’re bright, open-minded and up to any mental exercise i dare them to in order to declutter their minds. there’s hope for the future.

oscar speeches

yes, patricia arquette’s speech was non-inclusive, non-intersectional in a bizarre sort of way. she probably meant well but she could have broadened the idea of equality. she was good in “boyhood” tho. there’s something direct and uncompromising about her which i like. i have a question about common’s speech. here’s the transcript:

First off, I’d like to thank God that lives in us all. Recently, John and I got to go to Selma and perform “Glory” on the same bridge that Dr. King and the people of the civil rights movement marched on 50 years ago. This bridge was once a landmark of a divided nation, but now is a symbol for change. The spirit of this bridge transcends race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, and social status. The spirit of this bridge connects the kid from the South side of Chicago, dreaming of a better life to those in France standing up for their freedom of expression to the people in Hong Kong protesting for democracy. This bridge was built on hope. Welded with compassion. And elevated by love for all human beings.

when he talks about “those in france standing up for their freedom of expression” does he mean the “circus of hypocrisy ” led mostly by privileged white war criminals or does he mean those who were charged, arrested or detained right afterwards for “not being charlie”? the racist and imperial implications of the CH debacle don’t quite fit the parameters of the civil rights struggle. just saying.