logo
episode-header-image
Sep 29
2h 3m

Storytelling: A Common Thread of Humanit...

MO ISLAM
About this episode

A Saudi storyteller, actor, writer, and director whose work blends art with social impact, Fatima is the founder of Alf Wad Production House and The Other Story Project, initiatives that have transformed storytelling into a tool for cultural dialogue and community building.

Her breakout role in Barakah Meets Barakah (2016), Saudi’s submission to the Oscars, helped shape the country’s new cinematic wave. Named a “Next Generation Leader” by Time Magazine and described as the “Sophie Calle of Saudi Arabia” by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Fatima has become one of the most recognized creative voices from the Kingdom. She holds a Master’s degree from Harvard University, where she researched Arab identity and gender representation in cinema and literature.

0:00 Intro

2:34 Childhood Background

6:47 Control, Messiness Acceptance

13:00 Parents, Resentment Empathy

22:03 Imposter Syndrome

35:13 Barakah Public Reaction

41:50 Writing/Directing vs Acting

45:30 Owning the Narrative

55:04 Saudi Film Ecosystem Grows

59:34 “The Other Story”

1:11:24 Globalization Cinema

1:19:32 Alwad: A Thousand Valleys to the Heart

1:23:22 Red Sea Festival Market Maturity

1:34:44 Mental Health, Phones Finding Balance

1:40:31 Women, Theology Harvard

1:49:58 “Carve What Isn’t There”

1:52:56 Ignoring Bad Advice

1:55:29 Feeling Most Alive

1:58:32 Dreams, Manifestation Mortality

2:06:13 Closing

Fatima Albanawi

Instagram https://bit.ly/4mC4nP1

LinkedIn https://bit.ly/3IBI5iE

Wikipedia https://bit.ly/4nNGdCi

Website https://bit.ly/3IA3IQm

The Mo Show

Youtube https://bit.ly/3nDwsZv

Apple Podcast https://apple.co/3J9ScX4

Spotify https://spoti.fi/33dzsC2

Anghami https://bit.ly/3mRo1uy

Instagram https://bit.ly/2KAwq5v

X https://bit.ly/3KanEnJ

TikTok https://bit.ly/43L92po

Website https://bit.ly/3H2DhMM

Email info@themopodcast.com

Up next
Yesterday
How Diriyah is Shaping Saudi Arabia's Cultural Future | Kiran Haslam, CMO Diriyah
Kiran is the Chief Marketing Officer at Diriyah Company who is leading the efforts to re-establish Diriyah’s position as a globally recognized cultural and historical landmark. With a career spanning international marketing, communications, and brand transformation, he brings a w ... Show More
1h 10m
Sep 16
"Saudi Arabia Has the Most Football Fans Per Capita in The World!" - Ben Harburg 159
Ben is an American investor and owner of Saudi football club Al-Kholood. He made history for being first non-Saudi to acquire a team in the Saudi Roshn League. Ben is also the founder of MSA Capital, a global investment firm managing over $2 billion in assets. On this episode, Mo ... Show More
1h 22m
Sep 11
"Nature Is A Sucker For My Soul' -Andrew Zaloumis 158, CEO Prince Mohammed bin Salman Royal Reserve
We kick off season six with the CEO of the Prince Mohammed bin Salman Royal Reserve Development Authority, internationally recognized for his pioneering work in conservation and community-driven environmental management. A visionary conservation leader and human rights advocate k ... Show More
54m 20s
Recommended Episodes
May 2024
Hala Auji et al., "The Arab Nahda as Popular Entertainment: Mass Culture and Modernity in the Middle East" (I. B. Tauris, 2023)
What was popular entertainment like for everyday Arab societies in Middle Eastern cities during the long nineteenth century? In what ways did café culture, theatre, illustrated periodicals, cinema, cabarets, and festivals serve as key forms of popular entertainment for Arabic-spe ... Show More
41m 24s
Apr 2025
Growing Up in Jaffa & Getting an Oscar Nomination as a Palestinian Director | Scandar Copti
In this episode of This is Not a Watermelon podcast, we're joined by Oscar-Nominated and award-winning Palestinian filmmaker, Scandar Copti. We dive into his childhood in Jaffa and growing up in a neighborhood with a rich and tumultuous history like Ajami, to his rise as an accla ... Show More
1h 9m
Dec 2024
Episode Seven - Scripted: What's the Point? (When the World Is Dark)
Amid personal and global turmoil, in this special episode of Scripted/Unscripted, Nadia confronts the question, "What's the point?". She reflects on how writing serves as a tool for emotional expression, resistance, and connection, highlighting its power to humanize the dehumaniz ... Show More
23m 57s
Aug 2024
Iman Mersal, "Traces of Enayat" (Transit Books, 2023)
Traces of Enayat (Transit Books, 2023) is a work of creative nonfiction tracing the mysterious life and erasure of Egyptian literature’s tragic heroine. It begins in Cairo, 1963. Four years before her lone novel is finally published, the writer Enayat al-Zayyat takes her own life ... Show More
1h 3m
Dec 2024
Episode Eight - Unscripted: Navigating a Dark World As an Artist
In this unscripted episode, Nadia has a heartfelt conversation with Hayat Abu Samra, a Palestinian Jordanian Actor, screenwriter and filmmaker who’s been using her voice to spread awareness to her audience on Palestine. They share their thoughts on direct and indirect resistance ... Show More
32m 11s
Apr 2025
Short Stories from Arab Cities | Exploring Urban Narratives With the Co-Editors of "Mudun" Reem Khorshid & Faris Bseiso
In this episode of Ehkili, we speak with Reem Khorshid and Faris Bseiso about their literary project Mudun, published by Kaph Books and supported by the Barjeel Art Foundation. They trace the origins of this anthology of short stories about Arab cities, which began as a pandemic ... Show More
48m 37s
Feb 2025
Nawaf Salam, Joseph Aoun & Rafic Hariri commemoration with Michael Young & Bashshar Haydar
POINT COUNTERPOINT - Episode 3 An exchange on political affairs impacting Lebanon and the Middle East, with a unique vantage point from Beirut. Co-hosted by Michael Young (senior editor at Carnegie’s Middle East Center and editor of Diwan) and Bashshar Haydar (professor of philos ... Show More
58m 24s
Aug 25
Smita Prabhakar on Ishara Art Foundation & Nurturing South Asian Art in the UAE
We challenge the conventional perceptions of home and identity in a diasporic context and delve into South Asian art. An art collector, entrepreneur, and the founder and chairperson of the Ishara Art Foundation, Smita Prabhakar shares personal anecdotes, including her move to Dub ... Show More
57m 20s
Aug 13
Resurgent Nahda: The Arab Exhibitions in Mandate Jerusalem | Nadi Abusaada at Dar El-Nimer
We go back to 1931, when Palestinian journalist Issa El-Issa visited Paris's Colonial Exhibition and discovered Palestinian pavilions had been co-opted by British and Zionist organizers. This experience led the journalist to organize an Arab Exhibition in Palestine in 1933. Histo ... Show More
51 m
Sep 12
Hikmat Wehbi Tore Up a $20K Check, Dropped Out, and Reinvented Storytelling Through Podcasting
What happens when one of the Arab world’s most beloved podcast hosts finally trades seats and becomes the guest? In this captivating episode of Luca’s Insight Track, the mic is flipped on Hikmat Wehbi—a renowned visual artist turned podcasting legend—whose 225+ episodes and 40M+ ... Show More
1h 15m