RUBA NADDA
Writer/Director
Internationally and critically acclaimed filmmaker Ruba Nadda is a writer,
director and producer living in Toronto, Canada.
Nadda was born in Montreal and is of Arabian descent. She spent most of
her life on the move with her family. She has lived all over Canada –
Quebec, Manitoba, British Columbia and Ontario. In between, she returned
with her family several times to Damascus, Syria before they finally settled
in Toronto in 1989.
After graduating from York University, Nadda attended New York’s
prestigious Tisch School of the Arts in Film Production. She completed
the school’s summer program and upon her return to Toronto immediately
began her prolific filmmaking career.
She has written, produced and directed 16 films. They include: SABAH (2005),
AADAN (2004), UNSETTLED (2001), I ALWAYS COME TO YOU (2000), BLUE TURNING
GREY OVER YOU (1999), BLACK SEPTEMBER (1999), I WOULD SUFFER COLD HANDS
FOR YOU (1999), LAILA (1999), SLUT (1999), DAMASCUS NIGHTS (1998), THE
WIND BLOWS TOWARDS ME PARTICULARLY (1998) SO FAR GONE (1998) DO NOTHING
(1997), WET HEAT DRIFTS THROUGH THE AFTERNOON (1997), INTERSTATE LOVE
STORY (1997) and LOST WOMAN STORY (1997).
Her 12 short films have been shown in over 450 film festivals in five
years. She has had over 20 retrospectives of her work shown in numerous
cities, including Princeton (University), Rotterdam, Stockholm, Vienna,
Wurzburg, Austin, San Francisco, Regina, Edmonton, Ottawa and Toronto.
Nadda's latest feature, Sabah, had its worldwide premiere to rave reviews and sold out audiences at the Rotterdam International Film Festival where it was voted as one of the most popular films by audiences. Mongrel Media will be releasing the film theatrically in Canada in May 2005. Celluloid Dreams is acting as the foreign sales agent. Sabah has been shown at the Museum of Modern Art in New York and set to premiere at the following festivals: Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (Prague) where Ruba is also sitting as a juror for the Competitive films, Commonwealth Film Festival (Manchester), Durban Film Festival (South Africa), Seattle International Film Festival (US), Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival (Brazil), Talk Cinema (Toronto International Film Festival) and Warsaw International Film Festival (Poland).
Nadda is also writing feature films CAIRO TIME, HAYAT and THE CHAMPAGNE ROOM, all funded by Telefilm Canada.
She is also a fiction writer, with short stories published in over 400
international journals, such as Riversedge Journal, West Wind Review 18th
Anthology, The Sounds of Poetry, Blood & Aphorism, White Wall Review,
Room of One's Own and Wascana Review.
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TRACEY BOULTON
Producer
Tracey recently debuted her second feature, SABAH, at the International Film Festival Rotterdam. SABAH is executive produced by Atom Egoyan and Simone Urdl and stars Arsinée Khanjian (2003 Gemini winner for Ararat, À ma soeur!) and Shawn Doyle (Desperate Housewives, Big Love). It will be released in theatres across Canada May 27 2005. Her debut feature film THE RHINO BROTHERS premiered theatrically in the spring of 2002 in Canada to great reviews. THE RHINO BROTHERS’ Gabrielle Rose, was honoured with the Canadian Academy’s Leo Award for Best Female Lead Performance. The film also won the Platinum Award for Best Low Budget Feature at Houston WorldFest and the Media Award at NextFest, Canada.
After twelve years in the film and television industry, Tracey Boulton made her move into producing when she was awarded the 1998 National Screen Institute Drama Prize for the short film THE FARE. She continued on that year to co-produce the short film ABE’S MANHOOD (winner, Vancouver International Film Festival) and MARTIRIO. And recently delivered to the CBC Mix Flicks is the Ruba Nadda short film AADAN.
In 1999 Tracey studied at the very prestigious Canadian Film Centre’s Film Resident Programme, Producers’ Lab.
Tracey is currently producing CANADIAN FILMS IN SCHOOLS - a curated traveling films festival for high school students integrated into their curriculum.
With producing partner Paul Scherzer, Tracey produced a racy 13-part
documentary series for the CTV-OLN network entitled URBAN NITES about
Montrealers who work and play outdoors in the city at night. She and Paul
are presently developing a new comedic series based on Andrew Kaufman’s
ALL MY FRIENDS ARE SUPERHEORES with TCN/CTV, an original feature rover
with Dwayne Beaver (THE RHINO BROTHERS), GRACE with Asghar Massombagi
(khaled), PURPLE RINSE with Warren Wilensky (the cage), and AFTER ALFREDO
with Domenico DeLuca. For adaptation, Six Island and TL Boulton Productions
have optioned the award-winning novel MOODY FOOD by Ray Robertson, by
Andrew Kaufman, the non-fiction work MY DAD THE RUM RUNNER by Jim Stone,
and the original play LITTLE DRAGON by Keira Loughran.
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ATOM EGOYAN
Executive Producer
Atom Egoyan has directed films, which include CALENDAR, EXOTICA, THE SWEET HEREAFTER and ARARAT. He has won numerous prizes at international film festivals including the Grand Prix and International Critics Awards from the Cannes Film Festival and two Academy Award® nominations. His films have been presented in major retrospectives around the world and a number of books have been written about his work. Egoyan's installations have been exhibited at museums and galleries in Canada and abroad, including the Venice Biennale.
Egoyan was President of the Jury at the 2003 Berlin International Film
Festival. His production of Wagner's Die Walküre was performed by
the Canadian Opera Company in April 2004 and will be remounted in Autumn
2006. Egoyan is currently completing his latest film, WHERE THE TRUTH
LIES.
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Paul’s work in film and television over the past 9 years covers both documentary and drama. Paul produced the Genie nominated dramatic feature Khaled (Canada’s Top Ten Films 2001; Best Director Award, Karlovy Vary; FIPRESCI International Critics Award, Toronto International; Jutra Award Special Mention) about a 10-year old boy who struggles to keep secret from the outside world the awful truth that his mother is dead. Paul also produced the feature No More Monkeys Jumpin’ on the Bed (Best Emerging Director Award, Vancouver International Film Festival), written and directed by LAST WEDDING editor Ross Weber.
Recently Paul produced the TV-hour ROSE for CityTV’s series on love stories and prior to that a racy 13-part documentary series for CTV’s OLN entitled “URBAN NITES” about Montrealers who work and play outdoors in the city at night. Furthermore, in documentary Paul has served as line producer/production manager on numerous internationally acclaimed documentaries. For the NFB titles include Jeni Le Gon: Living in a Great Big Way (Montreal, Atlantic and Vancouver international film festivals), Java Jive (CBC), Tokyo Girls (winner of two Gemini Awards) directed by Penelope Buitenhuis, and Just Watch Me (Genie Award, Best Documentary; Best First Feature, Toronto International); and for the CBC the Gemini-winner HOCKEY NOMAD, based on the best-selling book TROPIC OF HOCKEY by Rheostatics band member Dave Bidini.
With producing partner Tracey Boulton, Paul is due to release the feature SABAH in May, about a Muslim woman who falls in love with a white Canadian man. He and Tracey are presently developing a new comedic series based on Andrew Kaufman’s ALL MY FRIENDS ARE SUPERHEORES with CTV, an original feature rover with Dwayne Beaver (THE RHINO BROTHERS), GRACE with Asghar Massombagi (khaled), PURPLE RINSE with Warren Wilensky (the cage), and AFTER ALFREDO with Domenico DeLuca. For adaptation, Six Island and TL Boulton Productions have optioned the award-winning novel MOODY FOOD by Ray Robertson, by Andrew Kaufman, the non-fiction work MY DAD THE RUM RUNNER by Jim Stone, and the original play LITTLE DRAGON by Keira Loughran.
Paul is currently producing a documentary based on the artworks of Edward
Burtynsky with Mercury Films.
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LUC MONTPELLIER C.s.c.
Director of Photography
Images created by award-winning Director of Photography LUC MONTPELLIER have entertained and provoked feature film audiences, festival cinephiles and television viewers for over a decade. Montpellier’s work is exciting, innovative and daring. From the textured dramatic palettes of KEN FINKELMAN’S FOREIGN OBJECTS, to the dream-like images of GUY MADDIN’S THE SADDEST MUSIC IN THE WORLD starring ISABELLA ROSSELLINI, Luc’s vision is timeless and poignant, illustrating a mature balance between art and technology, freedom and form.
His touch has elevated the successes of feature films like the award-winning KHALED (directed by ASHGAR MASSOMBAGI) which earned Montpellier The Haskell Wexler Award for Best Cinematography at the Woodstock Film Festival and the gambling adventure LUCK (directed by PETER WELLINGTON) which won Best Narrative Feature at the South by Southwest Film Festival in Austin Texas
Montpellier’s reputation is punctuated as much by the finished images on the screen as by the vital approach he brings to process. Relentless, creative and educated, Montpellier is dedicated to the cinematic search for complex statement through colour, movement and contrast.
His experience in all forms of filmed art is extensive, ranging from feature films, music videos and network series. Montpellier contribution of talent, wisdom and generosity of spirit is vital to the work of both aspiring and accomplished professionals throughout the world.
Montpellier has recently completed shooting SABAH (Ruba Nadda) a love
story starring ARSINÉE KHANJIAN and SHAWN DOYLE, the biopic mini-series
HEMMINGWAY VS. CALLAGHAN (Michael Decarlo) that earned Montpellier a Gemini
Award for Best Photography in a Drama, and the comedy CONFESSIONS OF A
SOCIOPATHIC SOCIAL CLIMBER (DANA LUSTIG) starring Jennifer Love Hewitt.
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JONATHAN DUECK
Production Designer
Jonathan Dueck’s career in design for film and television began
in 1999 with James Allodi’s THE UNCLES. Since that time he has worked
on many productions ranging from the award-winning dance films of Nick
de Pencier (STREETCAR , 2003) to the feature films of such rising director’s
as David Sutherland (LOVE, SEX, AND EATING THE BONES , 2002) and Ruba
Nadda (SABAH ,2005).
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Hannigan is a film and television editor of many award-winning productions.
There is a diversity of theme and genre in the projects she has edited
which include the arts documentary ARTEMISIA: A WOMAN’S STORY, directed
by Adrienne Clarkson; several TV movies for Jeannine Locke, a writer and
producer with CBC; and some of Canada’s best dramatic television
series (THE ELEVENTH HOUR, TRADERS, THE ASSOCIATES) with many of the country’s
top directors. The summer of 2004 found her working in collaboration with
Ruba Nada and Tracey Boulton, director and producer of the feature film,
SABAH.
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KIMBERLEY RUSH
Costume Designer
Rush has been designing for the last 10 years. Her versatility as an artist has led her to design not only in film and television but dance, documentary, commercials and music videos. She is also a talented art director, designing short films, music videos and commercials. Rush approaches her work with the sensibilities of both departments. She has worked with the likes of Walter Matthau, Carol Burnett, Alan Bates, Michael Madsen and Pete Postlethewaite. She has designed such films as HOLLYWOOD NORTH with Jennifer Tilley and Matthew Modine and TRIGGERMAN with Adrian Dunbar, Amanda Plummer and Claire Forlani. Rush recently designed a children's film called BAILEY'S BILLION'S starring Jennifer Tilley, Tim Curry and Dean Cain opening in theatres in March and a documentary based on the Douglas Coupland book, SOUVENIR OF CANADA, airing on the CBC this year.
Rush drew on her years of living and traveling throughout the Middle
East to inform her costumes for SABAH. She knew the costumes would have
to reflect a rococco aesthetic that is prevalent in that part of the World:
the gold jewellery, the saturated colours, the fabrics, and the ornamentation.
In contrast to thisis the image of Arab women in the mainstream media.
Often dressed in a hijaab and abaya, dowdy and asexual. Director Ruba
Nadda wanted to subvert that stereotype with an eye to portray woman in
a more modern and sensual light. Having lived, worked and socialized among
Arab women in Saudi Arabia, Rush was inspired by her recollections. “They
would arrive to parties shrouded in black from head to toe; however, the
reveal was quite the contrary. They would be dressed in strapless, plunging,
body conscious attire full of colour and accessorized to the nines. It
was all about the reveal. The dichotomy of pious (in the case of Shaheera)
and sexual. In the case of the lead character Sabah, her blossoming sexuality
was revealed in an evolving colour palette.
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