After the release of UPF’s Noor Khan documentary, we’ve heard from a number of you around the country about how the film has had a positive impact and how it can continue to do so. Here are a few of your best ideas!
For society at large, the film portrays a positive image of Muslims and Islam through a little known historical figure. It shows Noor’s compassion and humanitarianism, while countering misconceptions about a historical hostility of Muslims towards Jews. Even more interestingly, it exemplifies a hero motivated by her faith to sacrifice for others. Finally, the film reaches non-traditional audiences, such as World War II buffs, and presents a Muslim in the context of America’s moral triumph against totalitarianism. On the other hand, for the Muslim community, the film exemplifies a complex, motivated, and resourceful character that made difficult, heroic choices despite the fact that she had the chance to play it safe. The documentary showcases a Muslim woman as a fully participating member of society; she dominates the forefront of the film instead of playing a minor role in the background. Most importantly, it depicts the true essence of what a good Muslim should be, helping and protecting those who need it.
Within policy maker and security circles, the film can be used as a tool to combat extremism by presenting an alternate lifestyle guided and inspired by Islam, in which a Muslim woman is committed to protecting the rights of her fellow human beings. It can be used in college classrooms to counter possible radicalization and to underscore positive stories of Muslims who are part of the national narrative.
After the reenactment filming for the Noor Khan documentary ended, we went into the longer post-production cycle, the period I like to refer to as the teenage years of a film’s life because that is when the film begins to exert its own personality. Like a child in its teens, it begins to resemble what you hoped it would be, but is still not completely formed. In some ways, it is still awkward and worrisome. On any given day during post-production, one could be found busy with everything from writing voiceover narration to finding the right quotes from scholars, from selecting background music to working with broadcasters and finishing labs, where the color correction and sound balancing process ensures that in the end the film meets national broadcast standards. It’s hard to make a good film. It’s a constant process of selection, refining all the footage you have, all the ideas you have, all the possibilities before you, into a program that’s as good as it can be.