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“I Can’t Think Straight” was written, directed, financed and produced almost entirely by women - an Enlightenment Productions film. The company is co-owned by producer Hanan Kattan and writer/director Shamim Sarif and Enlightenment’s first completed feature was “The World Unseen”, which had acclaimed premieres at last year’s Toronto International Film Festival and the London Film Festival.
The production was independently financed by private equity. The investors include Lisa Tchenguiz-Imerman, who was drawn to the film by it’s theme that finding true love means finding yourself as well as by the unusual cultural setting. “Having a young, dynamic Palestinian woman as the protagonist was an interesting departure, and the way the Arab family in the film discusses the Israeli-Palestinian conflict felt very real to me,” explains Imerman. “And that reality is what we need to open up dialogue about these issues.”
Producer Kattan (a Palestinian) agrees. “I was very happy that Lisa Tchenguiz-Imerman, who is Jewish and of Arab background, saw in the film’s cultural roots the potential that I did.”
The British-Indian culture is also addressed; particularly the trouble families can have in coming to terms with homosexuality. “We wanted a lightness of touch in dealing with these issues, not to reduce their power, but to highlight them in a more accessible way,” says Sarif.
Enlightenment Productions’ mandate is to achieve higher than expected production value for the budgets involved, by tapping into the excitement and creativity of cast and crew who are passionate about their projects. By combining manageable budgets with excellent quality scripts and top class execution, Enlightenment is dedicated to growing their slate organically.
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