Production has started on the third movie in the University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s Carson School Film Series.
Filming for “The Healing of Harman,” which includes a cast and crew of nearly 75 students, faculty, alumni and industry professionals, was completed May 9-17. The local premiere is scheduled for Oct. 27 at the Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center.
Organized by the Johnny Carson School of Theatre and Film, the series features 20- to 25-minute short movies. The objective is to provide students with an opportunity to work directly with faculty and outside professionals to create a professional production that is larger and broader in scope than can reasonably be expected of students working independently.
The film is directed by Seth Pinsker, who has received more than 50 major national and international awards for his creative work in film, television, commercials and branded content, including an Academy Award Nomination for Best Short Film (Live Action).
“I’ve been really impressed with the talent of the students and the quality of their work,” Pinsker said. “This is such a good thing that Nebraska is doing for its students. Every once in a while, you come across something and say, ‘How come that hasn’t been done before? How come they aren’t doing it elsewhere?’ It’s a great idea.”
Julie Uribe, an Emmy Award-winning producer with more than 30 years of experience in the television industry, is serving as executive producer of the project and co-wrote the screenplay.
A native of Lincoln, Uribe is a lecturer in the Johnny Carson School of Theatre and Film. In 2016, she participated in the Nebraska Alumni Association’s Alumni Masters Week.
“The Johnny Carson short film is a phenomenal opportunity for students,” Uribe said. “They get to work with Hollywood pros. When they work on their school projects, often times they have an extended amount of time to complete them. One of the ways this is a more realistic experience is that time is an issue.”
Uribe has been working on the film for 18 months, and several of the students joined her last fall in working on the film.
Elijah Watson, who graduated in December 2017 from the university’s film and new media program, returned to work as co-producer and line producer on the film.
“I have a pretty high role on the project, so it’s been challenging and rewarding to see the film go from text on a piece of paper to a fully realized production with cameras, actors, directors, sound and production,” he said. “It’s been great to see (industry professionals) work with the current students who maybe haven’t had the opportunity to work on a professional set yet.”
“The Healing of Harman” is a story about a Kurdish interpreter living in Lincoln who meets a mysterious man from his past who asks for help with life and death consequences. While not autobiographical, the film is based on stories told to Uribe by Harman Doski, a local refugee from Iraq.
“It’s a movie that asks big questions about love, hope and forgiveness,” Uribe said. “Because local refugees are also acting in the film, our students have had the opportunity to meet them and be as inspired by them as I have. I think as artists, we always want to feel whenever possible that we can make a social impact, and I hope this film does that. And I think it’s exciting that the local refugees have had an opportunity to be working artists.”
Mourad Zaoui, who is originally from Casablanca, Morocco, is a Los Angeles-based actor who is playing the role of Mustafa Ali, the man from Harman’s past.
“When I told my friends in Los Angeles I was coming to Lincoln, Nebraska, they were making fun of me. ‘Oh, Nebraska. What are you going to do there?’ But actually I was excited, and I’m happy to be here. I love it,” Zaoui said.
Along with giving students the opportunity to experience an active film set, the project gives them the chance to participate in different aspects of a production.
Hannah Cahill, a freshman from La Vista, Nebraska, has had the opportunity to work on both sides of the camera for the film.
“It’s been absolutely amazing. It’s given me a ton of opportunities to work behind the camera and in front of the camera as a production assistant and also an extra with lines,” Cahill said. “That is extremely important, especially for an independent film, because then you get to learn multiple stages of what making an independent film is like. You get so much more experience than you would anywhere else.”
Other films in the Carson School Film Series include “Vipers in the Grass” (2010) and “Digs” (2013).
