Today my short film, "Tahani" went live on the LinkTV's One Nation Film contest. It is a 5-minute portrait of Tahani as a Palestinian-American spoken word artist and her experiences with the non-profit, Urban Word NYC. The contest is pretty cool - there are six categories of films committed to exploring the Muslim experience in America. The five top scoring films get judged by a panel of "celebrity judges" (including Marianne Pearl, Danny Glover, etc.). And the bonus - there's cash prizes associated with the top scorers. I told Tahani if we won it, I would split it with her - she gets to pay her tuition at Columbia and I get funds for my new film!
Besides the potential prize that awaits, it was inspiring for me to cut this film. I have been involved in some level with Urban Word since 2003 and Tahani was the very first poet I met. I've spent quite a bit of time with her and her family who I absolutely love and adore. I have learned in a very intimate way about the struggles Muslims - and particularly Palestinians - have while living here.
If you have time to vote, please feel free (you do have to register beforehand.) Click the LinkTV logo in the top left corner.
