The bond between a disabled Muslim father and his son is tested when love is pitted against religion.

Interview with Writer/Director/Producer Omar Al Dakheel

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

I made this film to push what many Muslims consider a black-and-white issue into the gray zone and raise questions: Can Islam be inclusive of everyone regardless of who they love?

Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?

You should watch the film because it sheds lights on different issues such as religion vs sexuality, family, and the clash of cultures. It gives an insight about rarely-talked about subjects about Muslims by Muslims.

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

The story can be personal to those who identify as religious and LGBT and their struggle to reconciles these intersecting identities. The film is also universal to anyone who struggled with following their father’s rules growing up, or had a different interpretation of their religions that caused family problems.

How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?

The story evolved from a small class exercise about social change, and kept developing over the period of 6 months until it went to production.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

Overwhelmingly very good, including a lot of non-Muslims who found it to be very relatable to their own religions too.

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

The challenge was that many festivals in the Muslim world or community won’t take the film due to the subject matter. I was surprised to see that the Muslims who showed up to the other festivals here in the States were actually very excited about the film and refreshed to see a story like this getting told.

What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?

We’re looking to have more people either see it in the festival circuit or watch it when it comes online.

Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?

All the above.

What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?

If this film can just create a dialogue about love versus religion it means it has done its job. Homosexuality has been a taboo issue for so long in the Muslim community especially and we hope people finally talk about it, and that would be the beginning of the progress.

What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?

Can you be Muslim or religious and gay?

Would you like to add anything else?

Follow our Facebook page to get more info about a screening near you.

What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?

I just finished making a feature film for an Al Jazeera documentary featuring Werner Herzog and it is airing later this year.

Interview: August 2018

We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela

Ablution

The bond between a disabled Muslim father and his son is tested when love is pitted against religion.

Length: 15 minutes

Director: Omar Al Dakheel

Producer: Omar Al Dakheel, Itai Forman and Xing-Mai Deng

Writer: Omar Al Dakheel

About the writer, director and producer:

OMAR AL DAKHEEL is a graduate in film & TV production from the University of Southern California.

Key cast: Jay Abdo , Omar Al Dakheel & Austin Mackinnon

Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists): All.

Facebook: Ablution Movie

Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Bronzelens Film Festival, Sidewalk Film Festival and many others.