theguardian: Haroon Siddique.
The call to prayer sounds and a serious-looking man with a bushy beard stares intently at the camera. At first appearance it is a familiar image of an angry Muslim but as the man breaks into laughter and begins to talk about his pride in being British, the viewer’s presumptions are challenged.
The clip is a trailer for Combinations, a short film being produced by Media Cultured, a fledgling organisation using film and social media to challenge extremism by and against Muslims. In an age when the Taliban and Somali group al-Shabaab use Twitter, and the anti-Islamic film The Innocence of Muslims on YouTube was disseminated by extremists on both sides to further their own ends, Media Cultured is an attempt to use the same tools to promote harmony rather than discord.
…With the longer version of Combinations almost complete, Media Cultured is already planning its next film, Head for Cover, a history of the hijab. “It’s not a piece of clothing that’s divisive, or causing separation or segregation,” says Khazir. “It’s actually just a personal freedom, a simple item of clothing which has biblical traditions right from the Jewish matriarchs to Mary.”