Mark Claywell (Director) announced today that his documentary, “<a href="www.americanjihadist.com.>American Jihadist,” will have its world premiere at the 16th Annual Slamdance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. The feature-length film will be shown as part of the Documentary Competition at 6pm Sunday, January 24 in the Gallery Screening Room and at 12:30pm Wednesday, January 27 in the Main Gallery Screening Room both located in the Treasure Mountain Inn.
A look at militant Islam through the eyes of an American who fought for it, “<a href="www.americanjihadist.com.>American Jihadist” is the story of Isa Abdullah Ali, a.k.a. Cleven Raphael Holt, who grew up in the ghettos of America’s capitol and was surrounded by physical and psychological violence from birth. The documentary considers the role that violence and lack of hope for the future play in the development of radicalism and poses the question: “What makes a person willing to kill and die for their religion?”
As the founder of Hype Media, Inc., and with over 20 years of experience as an award-winning director, Mark Claywell has created and directed various national and international advertising campaigns for Fortune 500 companies. Claywell directed, shot, produced and edited the majority of the footage for “<a href="www.americanjihadist.com.>American Jihadist” including interviews in Bosnia, Lebanon, Iran, England, Washington, DC, Boston, and New York City. This is his first feature film.
Jody Jenkins (Writer/Producer) is an editor at France 24, a 24-hour news network in Paris. He has covered the Czechoslovakian and Romanian revolutions, the Kurdish refugee crisis in the wake of the first Gulf War, and the Serbo-Croatian and Bosnian wars. For the past ten years he has been researching American Muslims who fight as jihadists. He is currently researching the life of Larimer Mellon for Claywell’s next documentary. Note: click here to view video of Jody Jenkins speaking about the film to Eve Jackson, FRANCE 24, ahead of the Slamdance world premiere.
Francois Bringer (Cameraman) has 20 years of experience as a director, producer and reporter covering events in the Middle East, Africa and Europe for CNN, CNNFN (Financial News), CBS, the History Channel, and Al Jazeera.
The Slamdance Film Festival takes place each year in Utah at the same time as the Sundance Film Festival, competing to provide a truer representation of independent filmmaking. Programmed by filmmakers for filmmakers, Slamdance has earned a solid reputation for premiering films by first-time writers and directors working within the creative confines of limited budgets. For more information on Slamdance, please visit www.slamdance.com.
“<a href="www.americanjihadist.com.>American Jihadist” is being promoted by Mark Claywell and Jody Jenkins. All rights to the story are available. For more information, please visit the film’s website at www.americanjihadist.com. To schedule an interview with Mark Claywell or Jody Jenkins, please contact Hype Media at 912/234-6962 or <a href="http://www.americanjihadist.com.contact”>contact via email. www.americanjihadist.com.
