Warring Factions at the Gallagher

WARRING FACTIONS

Wed April 14, 7pm

Gallagher Theater, UA Student Union

FREE

 

Screening of documentary WARRING FACTIONS, by UA Media Arts Alumnus Justin Mashouf

"Warring Factions" is Mashouf's first feature length documentary. Filming began in April 2007 while Mashouf was a student in the Media Arts BFA program.  In the wake of rising international tensions, he is cornered into answering the question, "Where is your loyalty, America or Iran?" Shot in both countries, Mashouf's journey throughout the film uses his love for break dancing as a way of bridging an American culture with Iranian youth. Additionally, he becomes a student of the traditional Iranian martial art of "Varzesh Bastani" and seeks to understand the sentiments of the religious conservative generation of Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution.

As voices in the Obama administration deliberate their official Iran policy and media outlets have fueled the perception of a nuclear standoff, "Warring Factions" is a call to (dis)arms. By combining documentary and studio reenactments, Mashouf looks at the blurring of world borders, and the looming threat of another war in the Middle East.

Mashouf will be screening the 70 minute documentary in addition to speaking about his experiences in Iran, his detention by Homeland Security and the confiscation of his video footage on suspicion of terrorism.

The screening is sponsored by Asian Pacific American Student Affairs, the Center for Middle East Studies, and the School of Media Arts.