Filmmakers Making A Social Impact: Why & How Weam Namou of Unique Voices in Films Is Helping To Change Our World
An Interview With Edward Sylvan
For decades, I tried to fill this void by using storytelling as a way to bridge the gap between cultures, to educate as well as entertain, to nurture communication and creativity as a therapeutic and transformational tool that could change people on an individual, community, and worldwide basis. My stories challenge audiences to think about assumptions, stereotypes, and prejudices, and how these manifest themselves in our relationships.
Along the way, I’ve invested in other peoples’ success by highlighting and promoting their work and being generous in sharing my time, contacts, and knowledge.
As a part of our series about “Filmmakers Making A Social Impact,” I had the pleasure of interviewing Weam Namou.
Weam Namou is an Eric Hoffer award-winning author of 14 books, a two-time international award-winning filmmaker, journalist, poet, and an Ambassador for the Authors Guild of America [Detroit Chapter], the United States’ oldest and largest writing organization. She is the executive director of the Chaldean Cultural Center, which houses the world’s first and only Chaldean museum, hosts a half-hour weekly TV show, and she’s the founder and president of Unique Voices in Films, a 501 ©(3) nonprofit organization. Currently, Weam is working on a film called Pomegranate, set to be the first Iraqi American feature narrative. www.weamnamou.com
Thank you so much for doing this interview with us! Before we dive in, our readers would love to get to know you a bit. Can you share your “backstory” that brought you to this career?
I was born in Baghdad, Iraq to an ancient lineage called the Chaldeans (Neo-Babylonians who still speak Aramaic). At age ten, my family and I immigrated to the United States. I decided at age 19 to write books and went about doing so, sitting on the floor at night with a large and heavy electric typewriter on my lap because we couldn’t fit a desk in my room. I found a New York publisher as easily as one finds a shoe store, only to later discover from his wife that he’d mailed everyone that queried him an acceptance letter before he died. That was my first disappointment in this field, but yet I kept writing and submitting.
After graduating from Wayne State University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Speech Communication, the plan was to go to law school, become an attorney, and write books on the side. Instead, I ended up writing full-time and traveling the world as I studied writing by various courses, including in Prague through the University of New Orleans.
In the mid-1990s I went with a friend on a tour of Spain, Portugal, and Morocco. On our way home, our flight stopped at Heathrow Airport where I entered a bookstore and saw a rack of novels about Arab women written by western authors. Each front cover showed a veiled woman in distress and on the back, a synopsis told of her attempts to flee from an abusive husband, father, or brother. I thought, “Is this how the west views us?”
When I returned to America, I searched for books, articles, and movies that depicted stories that portrayed a more realistic part of that world. There were hardly any out there, especially not when it came to the women. From that point, I was determined to write authentic stories and reports of the people and culture from that region. In 2003, I decided to expand my storytelling to include film as well, and so a year later, I enrolled at the Motion Picture Institute of Michigan, a one-year program. I had prior managed a family-owned video store for over 12 years, so this felt like a natural fit.
Can you share the funniest or most interesting story that occurred to you in the course of your filmmaking career?
In 2010, I was approached by the Hanna family to write a book about their daughter’s criminal case. At the time, their daughter Dawn was incarcerated in federal prison, accused of conspiring with an Iraqi-born British man who actually turned out to be a CIA operative. The project was sponsored by the U.S. to listen in on Saddam and his men.
I agreed to write a book and produce a documentary about this project. We then had to find someone to interview the CIA operative, Emad, who was in England at the time. I contacted Sandy, a British woman who worked for the United Nations. She had supervised the 2009 Iraqi independent elections in Michigan, which I worked in, and that’s where we met. She was later stationed in Afghanistan, and she knew a lot of reporters around the world. Sandy introduced me to Katia, and Katia really cared about Dawn’s plight, feeling the subject was a humanitarian issue since someone was “languishing in prison” and called this “a worthy cause.” But the day she was scheduled to interview Emad, she called early in the morning, her voice filled with qualms, and said, “I’m sorry, Weam. I will not be able to interview Emad.”
She kept apologizing and explained that close friends of hers, who work for top publications and television stations in Washington and London, strongly advised her against getting involved. She called what we were doing espionage — even though this story had already gained major publicity and the case was in the public domain. She suggested that I reconsider taking on this project, as it was not safe to get involved, at least not independently. Perhaps if I worked under the umbrella of the BBC or Amnesty, I’d get protection, she said.
I thought, what am I getting myself into? Soon afterward, I was connected with a broadcaster, Gina, who worked in London for a major Arabic television station. Like Katia, she was initially happy to interview the CIA operative. Later, however, she apologized and said that she would not be able to do so because the issue was sensitive and not appropriate for her network and other TV satellites. I asked if she had other recommendations, she said no, and we hung up. Her response made me feel more uneasy. I was on the verge of quitting, but that was difficult to do with Dawn’s parents clinging to the hope that this project would get their daughter justice. So I called a local videographer of Iraqi origin and told him the situation. He said, “You’ve got to be kidding me! People don’t want to interview this guy? I’ve got plenty of friends in the UK who work independently and would take this project in a heartbeat. What time is it right now? One o’clock. I should be able to get a hold of them in the next couple of hours and get back to you.”
Relieved, I made a cup of coffee and cuddled beside my children as we watched Max and Ruby. The videographer called back and said, embarrassed, “These guys…They’re too afraid to get involved. Can you believe it?”
“Afraid of what?” I asked.
“I don’t know — just afraid. The US Government is involved here, you know.”
“No, I don’t know. I thought we’re allowed to do legal things here.”
“All over the world, there’s a lot of political tension for Arabs, especially Iraqis.”
I and the crew rationalized the filmmakers’ reasons for not wanting to interview the CIA operative. Perhaps they were not citizens of the United Kingdom, and given the Islamophobia and Arabophobia going around the western world after 9/11, they probably feared that any involvement in government matters would cause their deportation or place them on the No-Fly list.
I ended up interviewing the CIA operative via Skype. The results of this project were a book called The Great American Family, which won an Eric Hoffer award and is currently optioned by Range Media Partners in Los Angeles, California. I also wrote, produced, and directed a feature documentary with the same title, which won two international awards and is currently represented by Porter Pictures in Beverly Hills, California. It’s looking for a home, a distributor. www.thegreatamericanfamilydocumentary.com
Who are some of the most interesting people you have interacted with? What was that like? Do you have any stories?
As a journalist, author, filmmaker, and worldwide traveler, I’ve interacted with thousands of the most interesting people from different walks of life. Some of the ones that come to mind are the late Vincent Bugliosi, an American attorney and bestselling author best known for prosecuting Charles Manson. I had a phone conversation with Bugliosi about Dawn Hanna’s case and he told me about his unwavering commitment to prosecute George W. Bush for murders associated with the Iraq war. Another interesting person was Warina Zaya Bashou, a 111-year-old Chaldean woman who made history in 2012 by becoming the second oldest person to be naturalized in the United States. She lived in my city and I interviewed her for an article I wrote for The Chaldean News. I remember her crediting her health to work, drinking, tea, and not going to see the doctor. There are also the French filmmakers, Claire Jeantet and Fabrrice Caterini, who interviewed my mother in my home for their documentary My Beloved Enemy: Iraqi American Stories about how she, an unlettered woman, attained her US Citizenship.
The person who made the greatest impact on me was bestselling author and mystic, Lynn V. Andrews. I met Lynn in 2011, through a phone call, and later, enrolled in her four-year school where I learned ancient teachings and was mentored by four incredible women who helped me heal old ancestral wounds, connect in a healthy way to my Mesopotamian roots, and embrace who I was as an American. This in turn improved my personal and career life. I’ve continued my involvement with Lynn by mentoring her apprentices and staying connected with her community.
What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now?
The most interesting and exciting project I’m working on right now is Pomegranate, which is set to be the first Iraqi American feature narrative. The film is led by a creative team from the community being portrayed, with female leading cast. www.PomegranateMovie.com
Like the rest of the United States, Michiganders experienced a lot of tension during the 2016 elections. But there was a deeper layer of tension between the Muslim and Chaldean (Christian Iraqi) community. It was very sad and frustrating to watch. No one wanted to listen to the other side. So I turned my energies to creativity, to writing a story about a liberal Muslim Iraqi girl living across the street from a conservative Chaldean.
The story is full of love, charm, and humor, and it’s intended to help heal and unite through its honesty (the girls say things to each other that we are all afraid now-a-days to constructively discuss and debate). Scott Rosenfelt, the producer of Home Alone and Mystic Pizza, is the executive producer of Pomegranate. He said that he loved the premise of the story and that when he read the script, he didn’t expect to laugh so much. It reminded him of My Big Fat Greek Wedding.
His and others’ similar feedback make me feel that I accomplished what I set out to do, which is to use storytelling to inspire, empower, shift consciousness, and help make the world a better place.
Which people in history inspire you the most? Why?
I love everyone and everything having to do with Gone with the Wind, the first novel I read in Arabic at age nine. My family and I lived in Amman, Jordan for nearly a year as we waited for a visa to come to the U.S. The novel was lying around, I picked up and started reading, and I was hooked. My mom had difficulty getting me to the breakfast, lunch, and dinner table after that. Seeing how enthralled I was by the book, my siblings took me to the movies to watch Gone with the Wind in English, with Arabic subtitles. It was the first time I went to the movies and so this story left a great impression on me. I connected with Scarlett O’Hara’s charm and her tribe, which in many ways resembled mine. That novel gave me the impression that American women wore huge puffy dresses, said “sir” and “madam,” and had extravagant barbecues broken up by extravagant naps. But Michigan in the 1980s was not George in the 1860s. Still, Margaret Mitchell, Vivien Leigh, and Clark Gable, planted a seed in how I want to one tell a story of women that resemble those I know, who are tough and pragmatic and not just susceptible and easily inclined to victimhood.
A woman who inspired me later in my adult life, once I discovered of her existence, was Enheduanna, the daughter of the great Mesopotamian king Sargon of Akkad. She was a princess, priestess, and the first writer in recorded history. Dubbed the “Shakespeare of Sumerian literature,” she had a considerable political and religious role in the center of her father’s empire, the city-state of Ur. After her father’s death, the new ruler of Ur removed her from her position as high priestess.
Enheduanna opened my eyes to the false narrative the world had been fed for thousands of years about women in ancient Mesopotamia. She lived at a time of rising patriarchy. It has been written that, as secular males acquired more power, religious beliefs had evolved from what was probably a central female deity in Neolithic times to a central male deity by the Bronze Age. Female power and freedom sharply diminished during the Assyrian era, the period in which the first evidence of laws requiring the public veiling of elite women was made. Over time, the stories of powerful women from that region were omitted from history until they began to resurface about a hundred years ago, showing us through archaeological findings their roles as oracles, astrologers, and politicians.
Let’s now shift to the main focus of our interview, how are you using your success to bring goodness to the world? Can you share with us the meaningful or exciting social impact causes you are working on right now?
I grew up not finding authentic stories of my people and culture in books, films, or television. Jack Shaheen, in his book Reel Bad Arabs, surveyed more than 900 film appearances of Arab characters. Of those, only a dozen were positive and 50 were balanced. Shaheen writes that “Arab stereotypes are deeply ingrained in American cinema. From 1896 until today, filmmakers have collectively indicted all Arabs as Public Enemy #1.”
For decades, I tried to fill this void by using storytelling as a way to bridge the gap between cultures, to educate as well as entertain, to nurture communication and creativity as a therapeutic and transformational tool that could change people on an individual, community, and worldwide basis. My stories challenge audiences to think about assumptions, stereotypes, and prejudices, and how these manifest themselves in our relationships.
Along the way, I’ve invested in other peoples’ success by highlighting and promoting their work and being generous in sharing my time, contacts, and knowledge. This led to establishing in 2018 Unique Voices in Films (UVF), a 501 ©(3) nonprofit organization www.uniquevoicesinfilms.org. The mission of UVF is to develop and promote uplifting media that encourages diversity and underrepresented points of view currently ignored by mainstream media, particularly those of MENA background (Middle East and North Africa).
Since its formation, UVF sponsored a weekly half-hour TV program that was recorded at CMN TV, one of the largest public access television organizations in Michigan, reaching a subscriber base of over 140,000 households for homes with access to Channel 18 on Comcast and WOW! The recorded episode is also shared on social media. After COVID-19, we collaborated with the Chaldean Cultural Center (CCC) and the University of Michigan [Detroit Chapter] to interview special local, national, international guests who have contributed to writing, arts, and culture. UVF has also offered writing and spiritual workshops, conferences, and retreats through UVF’s Path of Consciousness writing and spiritual community whose members are from all walks of life. www.thepathofconsciousness.com
This year an inmate in prison wrote me a letter after he read an article about my work in the Detroit Free Press. He asked if I could help him get his story, which he had written on paper, published. I was touched by his story, and agreed to help him. I received another such request from a journalist living in Jordan, who was exiled from Iraq for his writing. He has a manuscript about the villages in northern Iraq, many which have been destroyed by ISIS, and needs help getting it published. For me, working with these individuals is very meaningful, but it requires a lot of time and resources. I’m therefore looking into ways to help expand these types of exciting social impact causes through Unique Voices in Films.
Many of us have ideas, dreams, and passions, but never manifest it. But you did. Was there an “Aha Moment” that made you decide that you were actually going to step up and take action for this cause? What was that final trigger?
I come from a country where creativity and responsibility go hand-in-hand. From a society that dates back to Prophet Abraham’s traditional and tribal ways, where people do not act as individuals but as members of a larger group. Not long after I started my writing and later filmmaking career, I felt it was my responsibility to share authentic stories of the people and culture of that region, especially given that I live in Michigan, which has the largest concentration of Arab Americans and the largest population of Chaldeans in the world.
So each time a stereotypical story surfaced, one that dehumanized the people of Iraq, was an “Aha Moment” reminding me of my calling to tell authentic stories. Each time my authentic stories received a rejection letter while demoralizing ones received rave reviews was an “Aha Moment” that made me realize how accustomed society was to view us through certain lenses, and that it would take a lot of time and a lot of storytelling to change this negative perspective.
The final trigger was when in 2014 ISIS destroyed my parents’ and grandparents’ villages in northern Iraq, causing a mass exodus. They not only harmed innocent people in the most inhumane way possible, they also tried to wipe out historical sites, monuments, artifacts, cuneiforms, or books associated to the cradle of civilization, which is the setting for much of the Old Testament, including the Garden of Eden, the birth of Adam and Eve, and Prophet Abraham. Some of the most significant developments or inventions credited to the Mesopotamians include writing, the wheel, agriculture, beer, sailboats, irrigation, and separation of time into hours, minutes, and seconds (the clock). As I helplessly watched this dire situation, I picked up pen and paper and I wrote and wrote and wrote in attempt to document and preserve our stories, and to do so by focusing on love, culture, courage, and triumph.
Can you tell us a story about a particular individual who was impacted or helped by your cause?
I once received an email from a woman I never met who works in the United Kingdom and Syria, thanking me profusely for writing my 13th book, Mesopotamian Goddesses: Unveiling Your Feminine Power. She said such a book was much needed in that region to empower girls and women in the Middle East by reminding them of their true origins, which have been buried by extremism.
Over the years, I’ve received a lot of private messages from women of Arab background who feel that my work, my courage to stay true to my dreams while maintaining my tribal lifestyle, have transformed them in some way. These words fuel me to stay true to my calling and continue to produce meaningful and impactful work.
Are there three things that individuals, society or the government can do to support you in this effort?
One, individual writers and filmmakers can help remove the stigma associated with the label “Arab” once they stop portraying women only as passive or victims and men as terrorists for the sake of adhering to the market.
Second, celebrities like Salma Hayek and Shakira, who have Lebanese fathers and Latin mothers, could use their platform to bring this issue to the forefront, to lend a hand in supporting MENA filmmakers who are making films that represent their communities, and to pay greater homage to their Middle Eastern heritage.
Third, society, particularly the book and film industry, can play a crucial role by reviewing how they contribute to these harmful stories and looking for ways to change that. MENA communities are in desperate need of stories that lift them and help them alter the cycles of destructive patterns that seem to be leading to self-fulfilling prophecies.
In 2002, I was at the Surrey International Writers’ Conference in Vancouver (SiWC), and met with three film producers, one who’d produced Father of the Bride II, one who produced Pay it Forward, and the third, I forgot what he produced. I pitched to them and their response was that they didn’t see how they could possibly adapt my stories into film. “It would be difficult to cast an Arabic movie,” one said. “Who would we cast for the leading role? Tom Hanks?”
As if Tom Hanks is the only actor in Hollywood! It was not a problem to cast him in The Terminal, where Tom plays a man from the fictional country of Krakozhia who is stuck at John F. Kennedy International Airport. It was possible to cast Dustin Hoffman and John Travolta as women, but it is impossible to get a good actor to play a normal Arab? Plus, the roles of “bad” Arabs have been easily played by other western actors, starting with Rudulph Valentino. In the 1920’s he starred in The Sheik and Son of the Sheik, two films which set the stage for the exploration and negative portrayal of Arabs in Hollywood films. They both represented Arab characters as thieves, murderers, and brutes. The Wind and the Lion (1975), set in 1904, starred Sean Connery as an Arab who kidnaps an American woman in Morocco and demands a large ransom from President Theodore Roosevelt. Other actors include Douglas Fairbanks in The Thief of Baghdad and Richard Gere in Sahara.
My encounter with the producers at the SiWC was almost 20 years ago, and unfortunately, since then nothing has changed. There are 3.5 million Arab Americans, and yet our stories are underrepresented and stereotypical. This is partly due to the Arab/Chaldean-American community not providing a strong vehicle to develop and encourage the arts, which results in the perpetuation of the patriarchal stereotype. Having come from war-torn lands where creativity is oppressed and, in some cases, even outlawed, our communities often operate in a defensive survival mode. Of course, there’s the issue of women inequality in those communities which does not help.
Another reason why our voices are not heard is that the same institutions that claim they want “diverse and unique voices” have their own version of diversity and uniqueness. As a result, our children, particularly our daughters, rarely get a chance to view a version of themselves that’s relatable and inspirational, rather than pigeonholed. This is extremely problematic and harmful to our community.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why. Please share a story or example for each.
If you could tell other young people one thing about why they should consider making a positive impact on our environment or society, like you, what would you tell them?
Doing something positive for the Earth or society is a gift you give for yourself, because it transforms you. It deepens your character, keeps you from focusing on darkness and pain, connects you to your powerful inner force, and gives you a sense of direction. The saying that “what goes around comes around” is mathematically true.
We are very blessed that many other Social Impact Heroes read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US, whom you would like to collaborate with, and why? He or she might see this. :-)
I’d love to collaborate with Tyler Perry, because the foundation of his success is based on his faith and uplifting message. He’s a Renaissance man who, like myself, healed much of childhood trauma and did a lot of soul-searching by keeping a journal. I’ve read his story several times and am inspired by how he beat the odds and took himself higher and higher, along the way knowing the importance of raising people with him. Through his charity foundation, he has donated millions of dollars to nonprofit organizations, to help eradicate homeless and aid and support many other causes that serve people in need. To me, that’s the ultimate definition of success — using your talents and blessings to serve.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
“As a person thinks, feels, and believes, so is the condition of his or her mind, body, and circumstances.” Joseph Murphy, author of The Power of Your Subconscious Mind.
I’ve realized over the years that the most important thing to do is take responsibility for your life, for your thoughts, feelings, and actions. Though difficult, the process keeps you from muddling, complaining, and comparing yourself to others. When you focus on engineering and synchronizing your thoughts, feelings, and actions, you experience liberation. You witness the role you play in creating your destiny.
How can our readers follow you online?
Facebook: @weamnamou
Twitter: @weamnamou
Instagram: @weamnamou
This was great, thank you so much for sharing your story and doing this with us. We wish you continued success!
