SaqibSaab

My First Attempt At A Documentary

In 2007, there was an organized street cleaning and Da’wah event from the brothers and sisters of Islamic Oasis in Chicago, IL. A bunch of Qabeelat Wasat students went to go help out, and Wasat Studios was there to make a mini documentary out of it.

This was actually my first attempt at a documentary. It seemed simple enough, and in post-production, turned out to be simple, indeed. Film some all of the action (B-Roll Footage), and at the end of the event ask a bunch of people to comment on what happened, to use as means of interview in the documentary (A-Roll Footage). Put it all together and voila: instant documentary! Just add water.

I was even able to slightly do a Three Act Structure based on our experiences while volunteering. Stage one, setup of the street cleaning and the Da’wah that was done. Stage two, confrontation from the Christian groups out of church on Sunday. Stage three, resolution as to how we dealt with it and how the event went altogether.

I had two minor issues in all of this. Read more »

Gitmo Guard Terry Holdbrooks’ Conversion To Islam Still Making Front Page

Check out the front page of MSN today.

Five days later, his story is still up and center, mashaAllah. Above even March Madness! Neat, huh? If you haven’t already read about his conversion, click here.

Trailer of Napoleon of the Outlawz’s Story – Coming To DVD

Pretty sweet trailer made by the folks at the Canadian Dawah Association for a DVD they produced of an even with Mutah Beale, also once known as Napoleon of the Outlawz, a group founded by rap phenom Tupac Shakur.

What I love about this trailer is two things. Firstly, Read more »

Awesome Ad for Peace TV with Dr. Zakir Naik

Came across this the other day.

Neat, huh? I love Dr. Zakir Naik. It’s also kinda funny how it rhymes at some points.

Anyway, the first thought I had after seeing this was, “wow, this ad is really well produced.” I thought it was really refreshing to see an Islamic video that is produced “professionally” or with “high quality.” Most videos work we have now is basic record a lecture and throw it up on YouTube, with the quality being decent enough to understand and benefit from.

But then I had a second thought. What if the day comes when the standards of this video become the norm for Islamic video production. No more unsynced or fuzzy audio, no more handheld recordings without tripods, and no more sub-par. The same goes for all of our modern Dawah techniques; websites, audio CDs, and books.

May Allah (SWT) bring that day when the high standards of today are the low standards of yesterday.

5 Lessons Learned from Counseling at MMYC Spring Conference 2008 – pt. 2 of 2

[#3 - The Power of a Youth Camp/Retreat]

When the Prophet (SAW) grew up in Mecca, he would escape to the Cave of Hira to get away from society for a moment and reflect on life. After Prophethood, this practice of temporarily leaving life continued every Ramadan when the Prophet (SAW) made I’tikaf in the masjid year after year.

My wife, a Michigan native, has been attending the conference as a kid since it began in 2001 and continues today serving as a counselor. She wrote on her blog about the conference.

“I decided to come back again as a counselor this year at the conference, and it’s safe to say, that MMYC magic is still alive and well. I don’t know what it is about the conference that just *works*. Maybe it’s the speakers. Maybe it’s the hype of no parents + spring break + hotels. Maybe it’s the yearning to seek knowledge. Or maye it’s that all throughout the conference I was surrounded by a new batch of Muslim youth, soaking in the MMYC experience, making friendships, and being revitalized.”

I have attended just a few camps and retreats in my life, but every single time they change your life in ways you can’t while living life “normally” with school, work, and home. This is especially so for youth camps and retreats.

Read more »