Americanish

In Jackson Heights, Queens, career-driven sisters Maryam and Sam and their newly-immigrated cousin Ameera must navigate the consistent and sometimes conflicting demands of romance, culture, work, and family. Serving both as a lighthearted but critical reimagination of the classic romantic comedy, Americanish tackles and celebrates the complexities of womanhood by welcoming us into the world of these three women.

Directed by Iman Zawahry
Produced by Roy Wol, Paul Seetachitt, Iman Zawahry, and Aizzah Fatima
Written by Aizzah Fatima and Iman Zawahry

About the filmmaker: Iman Zawahry is one of the first hijabi American-Muslim filmmakers in the nation. She has worked on numerous films that have played at over 100 venues worldwide. She has worked as a producer on the feature film Paperback with Moonlight producer Adele Romanski and Sundance alum Adam Bowers. Her short film “Tough Crowd” won an Emmy Award and qualified her as a finalist in the NBC Comedy Short Cuts to pitch a sitcom with NBC executives. She is the recipient of the coveted Princess Grace Award for her film “Undercover” and was selected as a Lincoln Center New York Film Festival Artist Academy Fellow in 2015. Iman also collaborated with the non-profit Islamic Scholarship Fund to create the first ever American Muslim film grant where she currently serves as director. Iman works to amplify the underrepresented female voice. She wrote and directed her debut feature film Americanishwith a majority female crew. She currently is a professor of film production at the University of Florida.

Americanish will have an in-person screening at Asian Arts Initiative and will also be available for a 24 hour rental starting on 11/4 at 7PM. There will be a LIVE Q&A with the cast and crew after the screening, followed by a small reception at Asian Arts Initiative.