A young man fights for a chance to grieve his husband after his traditional Muslim in-laws demand the body be sent back to the Middle East mere hours after the untimely death.

Interview with Writer/Director Ward Kamel

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

The film is essentially an excerpt from a full-length feature I've been working on for quite some time. The themes we're trying to deal with are personal to me and many members of the core creative team, and I felt that while we worked to get the feature off the ground, making a short film that sort of sets up the beginning of the story could prove to be an educational testing ground for how the material might resonate with audiences.

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

It speaks to a situation that's often misrepresented, at best, or completely ignored, at worst, in mainstream media. Hopefully, an audience member would walk away from the film feeling more informed and in touch with the situations and sorts of people the film highlights, and curious to learn more about the intersections of the identities embroidered into the script: queerness, Muslims and immigrants.

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

I try to uphold the following two adages whenever I'm approaching any sort of artistic endeavor — the first is: "Universality lies in specificity", and the second is: "Write what you know". In a perfect world, "what you know" is hyper-specific to you as an artist, and in translating that specificity onto the page or the screen with radical honesty, you're tapping into a universality that transcends any single demographic. Anyone watching can relate, because in the process of dramatizing your own personal truth, you forego any attempts at appealing to audiences through falsities and predictions of what they'll enjoy.

People's BS radars are at an all-time high, and the most respectful thing you can do as an artist is to be honest and surefooted in what you're trying to say, or at least, try your best to do that! Audiences will thank you for it.

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

As mentioned, the story started as and continues to be a full-length feature. But in the process of developing the short adaptation and actually shooting it, cutting it and sharing it with people, I've definitely found myself being inspired to then go back to the feature script and make changes in response to how the short turned out and was received.

In terms of the short alone, I found that my entire approach to writing the protagonist, Manny, was turned upside down as soon as I met Gil, who plays the character. We talked extensively before the shoot, and he breathed new life into Manny in ways I couldn't have ever done in a vacuum.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

I'm glad to say it's been overwhelmingly positive! I've specifically been interested in noting the difference in response from audiences who can relate to the characters in one way or another, either through being Muslim, immigrants, queer or even through having recently lost a loved one, to the responses from audiences who don't exactly share those identities or experiences. On one hand, we've had people come up to us and say that they had no idea something like this could happen, or that they didn't know all that much about Muslim burial rites or the intricacies of the repatriation of human remains. On the other, we've had Muslim audiences, immigrant audiences...etc share that they felt seen or heard in ways they weren't expecting to see on-screen. But, we're still early in our festival run, so who's to say?

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

Definitely, but mostly in the sense that I wasn't expecting audiences who, on paper, shouldn't connect with the film to end up doing so in surprising ways. For that, I'm ultimately so grateful to my cast and crew who were able to expertly craft something that was uncompromisingly gripping — meaning that even if you had no objective reason to be invested in the film, you found yourself leaning in because the craft and performances were just so captivating.

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

Connecting with more people! We really want to share this story, particularly through a full-length feature film, and stress-testing the response and interest is vital for us at this stage of the process.

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

We've only just had our World Premiere at SXSW in March, so we're definitely looking to keep that momentum going with more screenings at different festivals. In terms of the feature-length film, we're still in the development stage, so we're open to any and all collaborators who may be interested in coming on board to help us tell this story!

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

Start a conversation, hopefully. Even if one person has a microscopic change of heart, or brings up the themes in the film to a friend or family member that gets them talking about what the film is dealing with, then I'd consider our efforts a success.

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

What qualifies one's agency over their loved one's remains?

Would you like to add anything else?

Support short films! Even short filmmakers are aware that it's not easy or very fun to watch shorts, but I promise you that there is a world of budding artistry to be found in the form. And if you're not sure how to watch a short that you've read or heard about, I can almost guarantee you that if you reach out to the director, they'd be happy to send you a screener :)

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

The feature-length version of this film! We're so excited to make it and share it with the world, and we're working very hard to make that happen!

Interview: March 2024

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

If I Die in America

A young man fights for a chance to grieve his husband after his traditional Muslim in-laws demand the body be sent back to the Middle East mere hours after the untimely death.

Length: 15:00

Director: Ward Kamel

Producer: Adrián Lausell Cabán

Writer: Ward Kamel

About the writer, director and producer:

WARD KAMEL is a Syrian filmmaker based in Brooklyn, working across film, television and advertising in a variety of roles. He strives to depict underrepresented characters in grounded and relatable narratives. His latest short, If I Die in America, premieres at SXSW® in 2024. His previous short, The Mood in the United States Today, won him a Best Director award at NFFTY, as well as a Best Narrative Short nomination. His scripts have been accepted to the Stowe Story Labs as well as placed in the Austin Film Festival and the Script Pipeline TV writing contest. The latest short he produced, Aziz, was a semifinalist in the Student Academy Awards®, while the last short he served as cinematographer for, Dress Up, premiered at Aspen ShortFest with screenings at Outfest, Indy Shorts International, Arab Film Festival and MoMA. Ward is a graduate of NYU Tisch School of the Arts and was the commencement speaker for his class.

ADRIÁN LAUSELL CABÁN is a Puerto Rican Screenwriter and Producer based in New York, with a story-focused approach to film. As a Puerto Rican Filmmaker, Adrian strives to champion underrepresented stories. After graduating from NYU Tisch with a BFA in Film & TV, he moved back to Puerto Rico and started a local production company, Elessar Films. Through Elessar Films, Adrian produced projects with various clients, ranging from large supermarket chains and professional sports teams to independent recording artists. He has recently moved back to New York where he is working in production on feature films, as well as shopping his own recently completed feature script.

Key cast: Gil Perez-Abraham, Hana Chamoun, Moud Sabra, George Shakkour, Ilham Malki

Looking for: sales agents, journalists, distributors, film festival directors, buyers, producers

Instagram: @ward.kamel

Website: www.ward-kamel.com/ifidieinamerica

Other: IMDb