Noor

An Arab-American woman, isolated in rural America, is forced to confront the ghost of her marriage when she meets a sexy next-door neighbor.

  • Lidiya Korotko
    Director
    Bombs Bursting In Air, Ashes
  • Caitlin Davis
    Writer
    Raven's Home, Missionary Style, The Cobblestone Corridor
  • Christina Naime
    Producer
    Noor
  • Akiya McKnight
    Producer
    Daddy's Home, Served Film, Lodge 49, Scream : The TV Series
  • Cookie Walukas
    Producer
    Black Is King, Samaritan, Wanna Go Camping?
  • Dina Shuhaiber
    Key Cast
    Refugee, The Mentalist
  • Alex MacNicoll
    Key Cast
    Transparent, The Society, 13 Reasons Why, The Last Rampage, The 5th Wave
  • Mousa Kraish
    Key Cast
    American Gods, Transparent, The Day The Earth Stood Still, The Dictator, Superbad,
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Romance, Drama
  • Runtime:
    17 minutes 44 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    November 21, 2021
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    Arabic, English
  • Shooting Format:
    ARRI 4K
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.39:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Lidiya Korotko

A multi-racial MENASA immigrant, Lidiya Korotko pioneers character driven narratives focusing on women, children and the forgotten within underrepresented communities with globally inclusive themes. Her directorial debut, Bombs Bursting in Air, screened nationally at multiple film festivals including two Oscar Qualifiers, Reel Sisters of Diaspora & LA Shorts International. Upon winning Best Film, Best Director and Best 1st Time Director, Bombs Bursting in Air got worldwide distribution with Magic Johnson's Aspire TV and most importantly got a personal recognition and a seal of approval by the Head of Creative Production of Shondaland, Tom Verica, and the director of BBC's Peaky Blinders, Anthony Byrne.

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Director Statement

As Sanford Meisner once said, "out of great pain come my little songs", the same is true for NOOR. It is a story that was born after a year of collective isolation, loneliness and tremendous grief of 2020. Our film explores different stages of shadow of grief that follow our protagonist Noor and how those stages can distort reality. I was compelled to direct this film because just like Noor, I also have struggled with not only a loss of a loved one, but a loss of my motherland, my culture, my language and ultimately a part of myself. It takes a great courage to mourn and even a greater courage to hope and Noor does exactly that, she hopes to rebuild sooner or later as time slowly heals her wounds.

Another factor that was crucial for me to explore is the way MENASA and Muslim characters are portrayed on screen. The MENASA region is not a monolith, but rather a wonderful symphony of cuisine, culture, fashion, religion, and language. NOOR presents a nuanced and celebratory portrayal of muslim Arab characters, furthering the much needed effort for more positive and authentic on-screen MENASA portrayals. Although thousands of miles from all that is familiar, Noor finds home in her husband Wael. “Home” is in the Arabic they speak to each other, the sfeeha she prepares, the coffee she brews in her ركوة (or rakwa), and the trinkets that adorn their cabin. Incorporating these elements to me meant crafting a story that is visually rich and authentic.

Once our film got selected for Women In Media CAMERAderie Initiative I knew it was going to be something truly special. Over 70 percent of above and below the line crew members were women and I made it my mission to make sure that more than 50 percent of those women were BIPOC or LGBTQ. Having the support of Women In Media allowed us to play with Alexa Mini LF, explore the props and set dressing of Warner Brothers, costumes of NBC Universal and G&E toys of MBS group. I am proud to say that the magic you are about to experience on screen was only possible due to tremendous talent, craft and work ethic of our cast and crew!