Eslam Farid

Yallah! Underground
2011. Young Arabs have taken their anger and discontent to the streets throughout the Middle East and North Africa. They have brought an acute awareness of the need for change in Arab countries. But most of the world is still wondering. Who are these people? How do they envision the future of their societies? In order to understand the dreams, conflicts and life situations of these people, we will introduce young contemporary artists from different cities in the Middle East. They represent a new generation of Arabs who seamlessly integrate aspects of different cultures and philosophies into their lifestyle and work. The conflicts they have to face on a personal and professional basis heavily influence their art, creating a truly progressive underground culture. It is getting more visible in every major city in the region, making the Middle East one of the culturally most vibrant regions of today’s world.

Farid Eslam was born in Germany and grew up in and around Frankfurt in a multicultural environment heavily influenced by immigrants. Graduate of the film academy FAMU in Prague, Czech Republic, founder of Mind Riot Media Lab. As director he has been strongly involved with Prague’s underground music scene, directing music videos and commercials. As producer he has nearly 10 years experience in commercial production. As director he won the Czech Grammy award for Best Music Video in 2005 (Aneta Langerová, Křídla motýlí), as producer he won the FAMUfest viewer’s choice award for Best Film in 2005 (The Black. The Dead. The Talkative, directed by Alex Eslam).