Episode 39: Ibrahim Nash’at
Podcast Art for Season 2 Episode 39 with Ibrahim Nash’at
In a first for the First Time Go podcast, I talk with a filmmaker in person -- Ibrahim Nash'at, the multi-award winning Egyptian documentary filmmaker who made HOLLYWOODGATE, which premiered at DC/DOX 2024.
(Let me apologize upfront about audio quality. It's not the standard I expect of myself and I'll do a better job with in-person interviews next time. Thanks for understanding and being supportive.)
We talk about how he got involved in filmmaking; his journey to Afghanistan to make this film while everybody else was leaving; what makes a good documentary filmmaker; the portrayal of the Taliban and women in Afghanistan; issues surrounding access for documentarians; and what's next for Ibrahim.
A documentary is frequently labeled important even when it isn't but that isn't the case at all with HOLLYWOODGATE; the film is an extremely moving cinéma vérité style look at a world that Ibrahim risked his life for us to get to see.
Ibrahim expressed an interest in screening the film for military and veteran audiences -- I look forward to that, too. In sum, his work is the best kind of filmmaking: it shows you not what you may want to see, or what you expect, but what is.
Links:
HOLLYWOODGATE Trailer
HOLLYWOODGATE Review
Ibrahim Nash'at Instagram