Being Osama
| Being Osama | |
|---|---|
 Five Montreal men who happened to have the name "Osama" | |
| Directed by |
Mahmoud Kaabour Tim Schwab |
| Produced by | Diversus [ca] |
| Written by | Mahmoud Kaabour |
| Starring |
Osama (Sam) Shalabi Ossama al-Sarraf Ossama el-Naggar Osama el-Demerdash Oussama al-Jundi Osama Dorias |
| Music by | Osama (Sam) Shalabi |
Release dates | November 2004 |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
Being Osama is an award-winning documentary produced in 2004 by Tim Schwab and Mahmoud Kaabour. Director Mahmoud Kaabour is the founder and managing director of Veritas Films, now based in the United Arab Emirates.[1][2] Co-director Tim Schwab is an Associate Professor of film at Concordia University.[3]
Synopsis
The documentary details the lives of six Montreal Arab men, all with the first name "Osama":
- Osama (Sam) Shalabi, of Egyptian origin, a music composer who grew up in Atlantic Canada. He is a leading member of the Montreal-based instrumental band, Shalabi Effect. He composed the soundtrack for Being Osama.[4]
- Ossama al-Sarraf (better known as Sultan), a Christian Palestinian-Canadian aspiring rockstar who wears dreadlocks
- Ossama el-Naggar, an Egyptian-Canadian musical expert and importer of opera and classical music CDs living in Canada for over 20 years
- Osama el-Demerdash, an Egyptian, who is very politically active regarding issues surrounding immigrant rights and deportation of refugees
- Oussama al-Jundi, a Lebanese-Canadian who runs a Muslim school in Montreal
- Osama Dorias, an Iraqi-Canadian and devout Muslim whose family fled Saddam Hussein's regime while he will still a young child. His father has recently returned to Iraq and portrayed as a university graduate and a basketball player involved in organizing a Muslim basketball league in a Montreal suburb.
They all recount their experiences in the wake of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
Reception and distribution
The film has been recognized as a contribution to the intellectual and artistic debate about the Arab diaspora.[5] It has appeared on many international television, documentary and news channels.
Mahmoud Kaabour also presented it in a two-hour special on the Zaven Kouyoumdjian pan-Arab talk show “Seereh w Enfatahit” (Arabic,سيرة وانفتحت) on the Lebanese Future Television channel.[6] [7]
Awards
Being Osama has won a number of international awards, including:
- Best Documentary at the University Film and Video Conference
- Best Documentary award at the Big Muddy Film Festival at Southern Illinois University
- An Aurora Award (for Best Documentary) at the Canadian National Youth Film Festival
- Certificate of Merit for fighting racism from the Canadian Race Relations Foundation.[8]
See also
References
- ↑ Mahmoud Kaabour at the Internet Movie Database
- ↑ Veritas Films
- ↑ Tim Schwab at the Wayback Machine (archived April 28, 2013)
- ↑ Sam Shalabi at the Internet Movie Database
- ↑ The Personal is Geopolitical: Horror and grace at the Third Annual Arab Film Festival at CityPages.com; by Caroline Palmer; published November 9, 2005; retrieved September 1, 2013
- ↑ Being Osama at the Internet Movie Database
- ↑ Being Osama at the Wayback Machine (archived April 28, 2007) " 'Being Osama', directed by Dubai-based filmmaker Mahmoud Kaabour" (2007) The Dubai Journal, retrieved September 1, 2013
- ↑ Review – "At a Glance" (April 21, 2005) Concordia's Thursday Report Vol.29 No.14