Posted by Nabil Echchaibi on Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Twenty-nine-year-old German filmmaker Burhan Qurbani recently released his first feature film, Shahada on the difficulties of being Muslim in Germany. Amid the celebration of his first film and screenings in prestigious international film festivals, Qurbani, who was born and grew up in Germany of Afghan origins, has bitterly realized that his audience still thinks of him as a foreigner in Germany who has made a film about Islam, and not a talented film director who is making a strong statement about the limits of multicultural Germany. Shahada is also about pushing the limits of what a Muslim is or can be in a multicultural society. The film tackles some thorny issues in any religious circle such as abortion and homosexuality. You can read a review here and listen to a short BBC interview here.
I was born and raised in Morocco. My research focuses on the intersections between Islam, Arab popular culture and the media. I'm currently an assistant professor in the School of Journalism at the University of Colorado-Boulder.