My name is Sultan Sharrief. I am an independent filmmaker from Detroit Michigan. Right now I am putting finishing touches on my second feature film entitled Bílal’s Stand- a semi-autobiographical story of the challenges and tribulations Black Muslim youth face. The film was made as part of a youth film program I created as a partnership between my production company Beyond blue productions and the University of Michigan. The program, entitled “Student EFEX” Encouraging the Filmmaking EXperience, puts U M students from many fields of study together with inner-city high school students. The purpose is to give creative and energetic students the opportunity to make a professional film while simultaneously installing ethical responsibilities through the hands-on learning, the promotion of teamwork, patience, responsibility, networking, and cross-cultural communication skills.
People always ask me (especially Muslims), isn’t it scary being a filmmaker and not having a steady job or steady income (I work project to project). I simply smile and tell them that, “God willing, everything will work out”. The truth of the matter is that I feel I have just as much job security as any engineer or doctor. When it all boils down, anything any individual has is from God, and it isn’t solely based on the work that he/she does. So being a filmmaker is only as risky as God makes it for me and, thankfully, he’s blessed me a thousand times over. Much of my reasoning and my decision to become a filmmaker comes from my interpretation of the following Hadith, “"I am as My servant expects Me to be. I am with him if he remembers Me. If he remembers Me to himself, I would remember him to Myself. And if he remembers Me in a gathering, I would remember him in a gathering, which is even better….”
I graduated from the University of Michigan in 2006 with a degree in Film and Video Studies. In addition to filmmaking, I have a background in arts programming and community service. I used this experience in 2004 when producing my first 35mm feature film- which was (inadvertently) done in the manner mentioned above. The The Spiral Project, which was budgeted by Hollywood agents to cost 3 million dollars, was shot in metro Detroit for $100,000.00 through the use of creative producing, dedicated students, and community involvement. Three weeks after our premiere, the film was nominated for a 2006 MTV Movie Award in the best student film category. It was one of five finalists out of over five hundred entries. While we did not win, the publicity got us in touch with Tapestry films (Pay it Forward, Wedding Crashers) and they picked up the film for management.
Although I was thrilled with the success of the film, in retrospect I felt that we could have accomplished so much more. We were sixty students strong, putting in eighty hour weeks, using all of our resources, and running all over Metro Detroit, but the content of the film—a high school playwright who got caught up with a dangerous girl—didn’t do the process justice. I also felt that our portrayals of the inner-city, the place where many students like myself call home, were stereotypical and a bit derogatory. As a diverse group of students we had a rare type of networking power and resourceful dedication that can really make a difference, not only in regards to filmmaking, but in the community. This power is what we transformed into the EFEX project and it has been running successfully ever since.
Sultan Sharrief
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