Jihad: A Story of the Others explained

Director:Deeyah Khan
Country:United Kingdom / Norway
Language:English
Editor:Kevin Thomas
Cinematography:Neil Harvey
Runtime:50 minutes

Jihad: A Story of the Others is a 2015 documentary film by Norwegian director Deeyah Khan. The film is produced by Khan's production company Fuuse. Jihad is the outcome of a two-year investigation by Deeyah and provides a view from the inside about what it is like to be drawn into radicalism. The documentary film sets out to provide an insight into why some young Muslims in the West embrace violent extremism and go abroad to fight holy wars and in some cases why they came to reject it.[1]

Synopsis

The documentary looks at the intimate personal reasons people are drawn into radicalism and how some find their way out of it. It shows that Westerners embracing jihad is nothing new and has been going on since the 1980s.

In Jihad, Deeyah meets one of the godfathers of the British and Western jihadi movement, who went abroad to fight, and who preached extremism to thousands of young Muslims across the UK and the West.

Deeyah’s search for answers then takes her to the streets of modern Britain, meeting today’s young Muslims, caught between extremism and the War on Terror. She meets young British Muslims who feel angry and alienated, facing issues of discrimination, identity crises and rejection by both mainstream society and their own communities and families. In moments of insight and enlightenment, she also finds hope and some possible answers to the complex situation we are currently in.

Accolades

YearAward CategoryResult
2016New York International Independent Film and Video Festival Best Short Documentary
2016Norwegian Ministry of Arts & Culture[2] Human Rights Award
2016Grierson Awards[3] Best Documentary on Current Affairs
2016British Academy Film Awards[4] Best International Current Affairs Documentary
201656th award for Current Affair's Documentary
2017Creative Diversity Network Awards[5] Best Current Affairs Program

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Mark Piggott . Isis: 'Godfather of Jihad' says he regrets recruiting young Muslims to Islamic State . ibtimes.co.uk. 14 June 2015. 14 June 2015.
  2. Web site: Sveinung Stoveland . Deeyah Khan får menneskerettspris for modig film om religiøse krigere. www.dagbladet.no. 4 November 2015 . 4 November 2015 .
  3. Web site: NTB. Deeyah Khan nominert til prestisjetung britisk dokumentarpris for Jihad-film. www.medier24.com. 29 July 2016. 29 July 2016. no. 25 December 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181225090051/https://www.medier24.no/artikler/deeyah-khan-nominert-til-prestisjetung-britisk-dokumentarpris-for-jihad-film/362860. dead.
  4. Web site: Television in 2016- Television/ Current Affairs on 2016. www.bafta.org. 30 March 2016 . 30 March 2016 .
  5. Web site: Chris Curtis. Shortlist revealed for CDN Awards 2017.. www.broadcastnow.co.uk. 22 May 2017 . 29 May 2017 .