“Fiasco” is a comedy about an Arab girl (Noura) who is secretly married to her gay American best friend Daniel to obtain the green card so she can stay in America and become a big Artist. But in the process, she falls in love with someone else (Rafi) and her strongly conservative father (Fareez) shows up for a surprise visit that propels her double life towards disaster.

“Fiasco” is high-end short motion picture produced as graduate (MFA) thesis project on the part of several students at the Chapman Universitys Dodge Conservatory of Film & Media Arts in Orange, California. The original short screenplay is written by John Sears and Nadia Hamzeh (MFA fellows at Dodge Conservatory). The creative crew assembled to date is a mix of talented moviemakers and emerging visual storytellers, guided by an Academy Award winning screenwriter prof. David S. Ward.

Writer-Directors Statement about the Story:

Inspired by her mixed background and bi-cultural upbringing between the East (Orient) and West (Europe), writer-director Nadia Hamzeh was intrigued to explore the complexity of the cultural controversy, especially for a modern Arab woman living in a western country when suddenly faced with her roots and traditional family demands. Hamzeh uses a comic tone to bring the story closer to the viewer and if anything she hopes to bridge some of the cultural gaps between the East and West and shed a light on why some modern individuals dont have a chance to express themselves and be productive in their countries of origin and hope for a better life elsewhere; just like the main character in this film. She thrives for freedom and control over her own life choices in love and career no matter what.

Key creative crew (as of June 2008) for the production of Fiasco:
Writer/Director: Nadia Hamzeh
Producer: B. R. Tatalovic
Co-writer: John Sears
Cinematographer: George Dickson
Editor: Felipe Cagno
Sound Designer: Thiago Barbosa
Production Designer: Brandi Brown
Creative Consultant: prof. David S. Ward
Project Supervisors: prof. Paul Seydor, A.S.E., and prof. Bill Dill, A.S.C.

April 2009:
-world premiere at Folino Theater (Orange, California)

Marketing and Festival Exposure
Immediately following the world premiere, Fiasco will be submitted to major international film festivals.