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20 October, 2004
ADC Conversation With Up and Coming Arab-American Director Omar Naim
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Omar Naim - Robin Williams - Mira Sorvino
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Born in Lebanon to a journalist father and an actress mother, Omar Naim is a promising Arab-American director and writer in Hollywood that openly discusses his heritage. Although Naim acknowledges and embraces his culture, he refuses to be defined solely by it. Instead, it is his unique talent and often quirky prospective that has earned him the respect of Hollywood powerhouses like Robin Williams and Mira Sorvino, both of whom star in his new film “The Final Cut.” ADC spoke with Naim about his movie, life, and the film industry.
Released on October 15, the film promises to be an intense and thrilling science fiction drama. “The Final Cut” is set in a futuristic world in which a “Zoë Chip” is implanted in the human brain at birth and subsequently records your entire life. Later, the footage is edited into a “Rememory,” pieced together, and eventually shown at the person’s funeral.
In the film, it is Alan Hakman (Robin Williams) who is responsible for the editing process, and as such reshaping and redefining deceased individuals. While professionally successfully, he is also cold and detached. It is on one of his “cutting” missions however, that Alan discovers an image from his childhood that has haunted him through out his life and that becomes a catalyst for his journey of redemption.
Although set in a somewhat surreal environment, “The Final Cut” thoughtfully discusses a multiplicity of serious issues. These include human communications, interactions and perceptions of identity. For more information about the movie, click on www.finalcutfilm.com
Why do you think that people are so preoccupied with the legacy that they leave behind? In other words, are we in a way defined by our paper trail?
- I think people see their legacy as a second chance to define who they are, to be remembered the way they wish they actually were. This is an ancient impulse- we have scores of gargantuan tombs and statues all over the world as proof. Once we are gone, all that is left of us is a memory, and the desire to manipulate that memory is at the heart of “The Final Cut.”
In the movie there is friction between the lives that people actually lead, and the edited version that Robin Williams’ character presents posthumously. Which version actually comes closer to the truth, the literal one or the edited version, which may not represent the truth, but how the person who died would like to be remembered, and therefore his deepest hopes and fears?
- The fallacy of the Zoë Implant is that it can bring you inside a person’s mind. It cannot. The richest and most truthful part of who we are takes place behind our eyes, in our imagination, and no amount of video watching can bring Robin’s character any closer to that. The film makes a parallel between movies and memory. Cinema resembles the way we remember life, not the way we experience it. So in that way, it is no different for our own minds to change our past, or a Cutter to change our past. It’s going to happen anyway. The extremely subjective nature of existence can be very scary.
The film also deals with a very interesting phenomenon of the annihilation of the idea of privacy; the idea that big brother is watching to the nth degree. This is something that seems to have become prevalent in the post 9/11 world, and with such laws as the USA Patriot Act that aim to make the personal world accessible to the public. Do you think that that the Zoë chip, in as far as it can be a monitoring device, is something that is not so far fetched?
- I hope it’s very far fetched! As the world gets more and more connected, it becomes easier and easier for everyone to pry into each other’s lives. But what concerns me and the film at this point is the effect of this surveillance on our relationship with ourselves, not other people. Would it inhibit our lives to know they were being recorded? Would we have false dramatic expectations of our lives that are simply not possible? Life does not have a three-act structure where everything is tied up neatly, and yet sometimes we expect it to.
Did your own experiences as an immigrant and an Arab American influence you in writing and directing this movie?
- My experience as an immigrant affected me deeply. The idea for the film emerged while I was editing my documentary in college, and I had been away from my family for a year and a half. I was really missing them. Their images in my head were wavering. I got the idea then to film interviews with them, 20 hours long, and ask them everything I’ve always wanted to know about them. That way I could always have them with me. I never did that, it’s too morbid, but the impulse to do so grew out of the distance between us.
I’ve been in the States for almost ten years now, and yet I still feel like an outsider everywhere I go, be it the United States or Lebanon. I have an identity crisis that I don’t think will ever go away. I was worried about this at first, but now I realize that my voice as a filmmaker is rooted in that – my film is about an identity crisis! Growing up in several countries also gave me some perspective about the world, and about world cinema, that I think informs my work.
The media and creative world in the US in general seems to have limited access to creative Arab Americans such as yourself, and so the “Arab” remains a single faceted, distant figure. Do you find that you encountered any resistance in your career because of this prevalent dynamic?
- I have found that people in Hollywood are, first and foremost, interested in making films. If they think you are talented, then you could be from Mars for all they care. It’s a tough business for anyone to break into. I think with hard work and determination, it can be done.
What advice would you give a young Arab or Arab American hoping to pursue a career in the film industry?
-My advice to you Arab filmmakers is WRITE. Writing is the secret weapon. It’s a way in. As Arab Americans, we have a unique cultural experience that can translate into new stories and new characters. These stories can be explicitly “Arab” in topic, like Ziad Doueri’s “West Beirut,” or not. Don’t worry too much about feeling that you must deal with Arab issues in your films. Your identity is part of every decision you make. Whether you like it or not, you Arab fingerprints will be all over your work.
Train yourselves in the craft and always be writing. The external hurdles to making a film are daunting, but they will melt away if you overcome the internal hurdles. If you know your film history, and know your technical stuff, and are pleasant to work with, and have a good script… things will happen.
In the film, you’ve paved the way for a new interpretation of Arab Americans through a non political Arab American character named Hasan, played by Thom Bishops. Do you think it’s important to represent such characters as your average Joe, as opposed to symbolic or representational figures?
- Absolutely. To have a non-political Arab character, who just happened to be Arab, was the whole point for me. I don’t define myself completely by my politics or ethnicity, and yet time after time Arab Americans are turned into symbolic figures in films, for good or bad. I am just an individual who happens to be Arab, and so is Hasan in the film.
Why do you think that there is not as much emphasis and funding in the Middle East of arts programs as opposed to science and math?
- It saddens me that there is so little interest in funding the arts in the Middle East. There are so many wealthy people, and they would rather invest in just about anything other than theater or films or literature or music. The mindset needs to be changed. People don’t see the value of the arts sometimes because they are not always tangible. I also think censorship in Arab countries is a big problem. If you make a film about an Arab country that is honest and truthful, guaranteed it will have trouble screening in almost every Arab country. Our governments treat us like children who need to be protected from the dangers of art and culture and ideas. But a Middle Eastern art movement, across mediums, is brewing. Technology is making it cheaper to create work and have it seen.
When did you realize you wanted to become involved in the film industry?
- I wanted to be a writer since I was 11. When I was about 13 I discovered cinema and completely fell in love. It became my obsession. I programmed film festivals for myself, and read every film book and magazine I could find. The only constant in my life for years was that I was SURE this is what I wanted to do.
How was it like working with Robin Williams, the funniest man ever?
-Working with Robin was a pleasure and an education. He’s so generous and kind as a human being, and so skilled and brilliant as an actor. Robin and I both connected strongly over the main character. He was my closest ally on the film. It’s because of his faith in me and my script that this film ever happened. He also loved my documentary, “Grand Theater: A Tale of Beirut,” a film about memory and the Lebanese civil war.
Robin stays in character when we are shooting… but between setups he’s a ball of energy. We got front row seats to one of the greatest comedians of all time. I laughed so hard a few times I nearly peed myself.
What legacy do you want to leave behind?
-When they speak of me, I would like them to say, “Omar Naim… he made the best Kafta bi taheen I have ever had.
The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) would like to thank Omar Naim for taking the time to discuss his movie “The Final Cut.” He was a pleasure to interview. ADC is encouraged by the great example Naim has set for Arab Americans and Arabs, and wishes him much deserved success.
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