The RizTest Podcast The RizTest Podcast

Ramadan Mubarak! Ramadan Kareem! 🕋

We geek out and level up this week with the amazingly talented Osama Dorias and discuss the topic of representation of Muslims in Video Games🕹. 

Osama is Lead Games Designer at Warner Brother Games Canada, authored the Independent Video Games programme at Dawson College (Qubec) , founded the Montreal Independent Games Awards and is President of the Muslim In Games Special Interest Group for the IGDA (International Games Developers Association).

Osama is also a prolific public speaker talking about Muslim Representation in Video Games at conferences around the world, most notably at the Games Developer Conference presenting a “How to Guide to Muslim Representation in Video Games”.

We discuss:


Personal journey into the world of video games
The ‘Good Muslim Vs Bad Muslim’ Trope
Parallels between the Film & TV and Games Industry
Well-Intentioned mistakes with representation and why being too afraid to try leads to poor representation
Bad guys in games: Zombies, Muslims and Nazis
Concept of 'Arabistan'
Is representation better in Indie Games? or Big Studio Games?
People of Colour in Play (organisation)
Muslim Representation in Graphic Novels
Osama’s Talk at the GDC “A How to Guide for Muslim Representation in Video Games”

https://youtu.be/p4MHV15n-Lw



Games covered:


Little Big Planet (2008)
Call of Duty Franchise (2007-)
Counter Strike (2000)
Terminator Salvation (2009)
Super Street Fighter IV (2010)
Tekken 7 (2015)
Overwatch (2015)
Deus Ex (2000)
Assassins Creed Franchise (2007-)
Spiderman (PS4 2018)
Good Pizza Great Pizza (2018)
MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries (2018)
Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege: Year 5 Pass (2020)
After HOURS (2018)

It’s been a long time in the making but here we are with our Bollywood special. 

We sit down (in our own homes) with the talented Mr Asim Burney, host and producer of the Khandaan podcast to talk about Muslim Representation in Bollywood.

Shownotes below:

· The Khandaan Podcast

· Who is Bollywood for?

· Sense of cultural betrayal – when did Bollywood start demonising Muslims?

· Perspectives on Bollywood from Muslims in the US, UK and Europe

· Are there any nuanced representations of Muslims

· Why don’t Muslim actors speak out?

· Shahrukh Khan’s article for New York Times, Outlook Turning Points: “Being a Khan”, 2013

o https://www.indiatoday.in/movies/celebrities/story/shah-rukh-khan-on-being-a-muslim-outlook-turning-points-magazine-152347-2013-01-23

· Aamir Khan’s statement on intolerance in India

o “I am alarmed, my wife suggested moving out of India” https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/hindi/bollywood/news/Aamir-Khan-on-intolerance-I-am-alarmed-my-wife-suggested-moving-out-of-India/articleshow/49897156.cms#

And here’s a full list of movies we cover in this episode:

· Kal Ho Na Ho (2003)

· Maine Pyar Kiya (1989)

· Delhi Belly (2011)

· Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995)

· Sholay (1975)

· Darr (1993)

· Sarfarosh (1999)

· Border (1997)

· Gadar: Ek Prem Katha (2001)

· Andhadhun (2018) Positive Muslim Representation

· Gully Boy (2019) Positive Muslim Representation

· 24, True Lies, Jack Ryan

· Vada Chennai (2018)

· Trance (2020)

· Pakeezah (1972)

· Mughal-E-Azam (1960)

· Coolie (1983)

· Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kya (1998)

· Ae Dil Hai Mushkil (2016)

· Dil Se (1998)

· Bharat (2019)

· Sultan (2016)

· Mr India (1987)

Hey hey Mary J ✊🏽

We’re back after a hiatus working on personal projects (both of us dabbling in a bit of writing on the forthcoming book, I Refuse To Condemn – edited by the talented Asim Qureshi) with a brand new episode. We’re chuffed to bits to be able to finally sit down (virtually) in this new socially isolated world with our guest Daniel York Loh. We discuss his start in the theatre, writing productions such as The Fu Manchu Complex which challenges the 'Yellow Peril' racist stereotype and talk through early years breaking into the film industry. We have an awesome wide ranging conversation that covers:


The Hounslow Art Collective and Parv Bancil’s influence on his career
The term ‘Ethnic Drag’, performing your ethnicity as opposed to acting
‘Chinese’ being a problematic term
Pan Asian Identities
The Oriental Stereotype and Orientalist white gaze
Founding BEATS and The ‘Living with the Lams’ controversy
Stereotypes of the ‘Model Minority’
Crazy Rich Asians being a significant yet problematic milestone
The Rep Sweats
And of course we end with the Question Time Guy

You can follow Daniel on Twitter at @danielfyork

Sup homeslice! ✊🏽
This episode we spend the day on set of Channel 4 comedy/drama Home Season 2 and have a chat with the wonderful Youssef Kerkour (who plays the lead, Sami) and Shibbir Ahmed (DIT on Home Season 1&2).
After spending the day behind the scenes, we have a conversation with Youssef and Shibbir in the warmth of Youssef’s trailer discussing the importance of being seen on screen, the challenges of authentically representing the refugee experience and what can be done to improve diversity on and off screen. We call each other habibi a lot.
Also No Spoiler Alert – we’re cool like that.
Films discussed:

Exodus with Hassan Akkad
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/kY8dKDD7lNV7lpzdctQGf6/the-stories-behind-the-journeys
The Siege
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0133952/
For Sama
https://www.forsamafilm.com/

Follow Youssef @YoussefKerkour
Follow Shibbir @Shibbir1
And huge thanks to Ibrahim Al Jeffrey for his support on the day 🖖🏽 - follow him too @ibrahim_Al_Jeff

We’re back with Season 2!💥✊🏽

Did you miss us? We’re back with an amazing deep dive into Iranian cinema with the wonderful Dr. Zahra Khosroshahi, friend of the RizTest and scholar at the University of East Anglia. We talk about post revolutionary feminist representation in Iranian cinema, creativity with the backdrop of censorship and why Iranian Cinema is so much more than Persepolis.

Intro trailer: A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (2014)

Notes:

Recommended feature films by Rakhshan Banietemad


Nargess (1992)
Blue Veiled (1995)
The May Lady (1999)
Under the Skin of the City (2001)
The May Lady (2006)
Tales (2014)

Other Iranian directors mentioned by Zahra:


Pouran Derakhshandeh
Tahmineh Milani
Asghar Farhadi
Reza Dormishian
Jafar Panahi
Samiara Makhmalbaf

Must watch Diaspora Iranian films:


A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (Ana Lily Amirpour, 2014)
Under the Shadow (Babak Anvari, 2016)

Interview with Rakhshan Banietemad


Kay Armatage, Zahra Khosroshahi
Feminist Media Histories, Vol. 3 No. 1, Winter 2017; (pp. 140-155) DOI: 10.1525/fmh.2017.3.1.140

Iranian Film Festival (London)


http://www.ukiff.org.uk/about

A platform for watching Iranian films


https://www.imvbox.com/

Other notes:


Gholam (2017) is on Amazon to rent/buy
Twitter: @zahrafkh
If interested in blogs/content about sustainability, check out:
https://livinglifenaturalblog.com/author/zahrak/
http://muslimgirl.com/45573/heres-modest-fashion-ethics-need-go-hand-hand/

TEN!✊🏽

Sadia and Shaf catch up on what has been going on in the world of representation, what we've been up to in the little break we've had and what we have planned in the coming weeks.

Notes:


Bradford Literature Festival Controversy
Bradford in Our Own Words Event
Hussein Kesvani's book Follow Me, Akhi
Collaborations with Riz Ahmed at the CAA Amplify conference
Youssef Kerkour and Channel 4 show, Home
Francis Agnoli's write up on DC Universe animation, Young Justice
Future Podcast Guests