Ruba Nadda

Films directed by Ruba Nadda

• Do Nothing (1997)
• Interstate Love Story (1997)
• Lost Woman Story (1997)
• Wet Heat Drifts Through the Afternoon (1997)
• Damascus Nights (1998)
• So Far Gone (1998)
• The Wind Blows Towards Me Particularly (1998)
• Black September (1999)
• Blue Turning Grey Over You (1999)
• I Would Suffer Cold Hands For You (1999)
• Laila (1999)
• Slut (1999)
• I Always Come to You (2000)
• Unsettled (2001)
• Aadan (2004)  (also known as: "Call to Prayer")
• Sabah (2005)  (also known as: "Coldwater", "Sabah on rakastunut!", "Sabah: A Love Story")
• Cairo Time (2009)  (also known as: "Souvenirs du Caire", "W Kairze")
• Inescapable (2012)  (also known as: "Ajojahti", "Entführt in Damaskus", "No Escape")
• October Gale (2014)

Quotes by Ruba Nadda

"It's why I became a filmmaker. I just was desperate to shed light on the common misconceptions the West has of the Middle East."
-- Ruba Nadda (source)

Quotes about Ruba Nadda

"[Ruba Nadda's] work consists of a dozen, small, black-and-white films about olive-skinned Muslim girls and their encounters in Toronto—with angry or depressed parents, men of various skin colours, with criminals and lovers. Flat, almost deliberately banal on the surface, they are filled with the unspoken baggage of ethnicity, skin colour and religious attitudes. [...] Though she has been making films for just three years, Nadda is breathtakingly industrious. In addition to 12 short films, she has made one black-and-white feature, I Always Come To You, which is awaiting distribution. And, currently, she is shooting Unsettled, her first film in colour."
-- Liam Lacey (source)

"Ruba Nadda's [short] films take a fly-on-the-wall-perspective, peering briefly into the lives of people who would otherwise be ignored. [...] Mothers scream at daughters, lovers deliver parting words and solitary individuals face public embarrassment. Everyone always seems poised on the edge of an emotional cliff, a short step from a terminal plunge. People say regrettable things, sometimes painfully true but just as often tragically false. Nadda cuts out all of the chaff to focus directly on those moments when decisions are made which cannot be undone."
-- Gerald Saul (source)

For QUOTES about a specific film by Ruba Nadda, please see:   Sabah    Cairo Time    Inescapable    October Gale   

Notes about Ruba Nadda

• Director, screenwriter, and author.
• Born in Montreal; raised in Canada and in Syria.
• Studied English literature at York University (Toronto) and film at the Tisch School of the Arts (New York University).

Bibliography for Ruba Nadda

Section 1: Publications by Ruba Nadda

• Montpellier, Luc, and Ruba Nadda. "Commentary."Cairo Time, DVD. Directed by Ruba Nadda. Toronto: Mongrel Media, 2010.
• Nadda, Ruba. "The moonlighter : Ruba Nadda: Filmmaker, clerical worker, festival darling." Saturday Night, November 11, 2000.

Section 2: Publications about Ruba Nadda

Articles from Newspapers, Magazines, or News Websites

• Doran, D'Arcy. "Lights, camera, action: Living to make movies; Unknown in Canada, Nadda's tops abroad; Directing films on a shoestring." Interview with Ruba Nadda. Toronto Star, June 25, 1999.
• Glassman, Marc. "10 to watch: Ruba Nadda - writer/director." Playback, August 17, 2009.
• Lacey, Liam. "Made in Canada, for export only: Virtually unknown in her adopted homeland, Syrian-Canadian filmmaker Ruba Nadda works a data-entry job to finance her films about the lives of immigrant Muslim girls." Globe and Mail, August 1, 2000.
• Teitlebaum, Sheli. "Five-dollar moviemaker." Interview with Ruba Nadda. Jerusalem Report, November 6, 2000.

Web Sites

• "Ruba Nadda." International Film Festival Rotterdam. http://www.filmfestivalrotterdam.com/professionals/persons/ruba-nadda/.
• Saul, Gerald. "Eleven Films by Ruba Nadda." Saskatchewan Filmpool. http://www.nmsl.uregina.ca/saul/11films_by_ruba_nadda.htm.

Section 3: Publications about the Films of Ruba Nadda

Sabah (2005)  (also known as: "Coldwater", "Sabah on rakastunut!", "Sabah: A Love Story")

Journal Articles

• Gana, Nouri. "Everyday Arabness: The Poethics of Arab Canadian Literature and Film." CR: The New Centennial Review 9, no. 2 (Autumn 2009): 21-44.

Articles from Newspapers, Magazines, or News Websites

• Baldassarre, Angela. "Belly dancing with controversy: Actress plays a single Muslim woman who goes to a public pool and meets a Christian man." Interview with Arsinée Khanjian. Vancouver Sun, May 27, 2005.
• Davidson, Sean. "Egoyan, Mehta warm to Coldwater." Playback, June 21, 2004.
• Elia, Noelle. "Ruba Nadda's gift." Point of View: POV, Summer 2005.
• Ghandour, Rania. "Love across cultures." Interview with Ruba Nadda. The West Australian, December 8, 2006.
• Lavoie, André. "Au-delà de la Bible ou du Coran...." Review of Sabah. Le Devoir, July 16, 2005. [in French]
• Lavoie, André. "De la difficulté d'être prophète: Entretien avec Ruba Nadda, réalisatrice de Sabah." Interview with Ruba Nadda. Le Devoir, July 16, 2005. [in French]
• Marquis, Antonin. "Sabah." Review of Sabah. Séquences, September-October 2005. [in French]
• McLaren, Leah. "Profile: Ruba Nadda." Interview with Ruba Nadda. Globe and Mail, May 27, 2005.
• Mohammad-Kashi, Sabereh. "Love is greater than culture: Exclusive interview with Rubba Nadda, the screenplay writer and director of 'Sabah'." Interview with Ruba Nadda. Film International: Iranian Film Quarterly, Summer 2005.
• Monk, Katherine. "Another 'New Canadian' finds herself: This time, a Muslim woman in Toronto. Such films are becoming a national genre, but actor, director lift Sabah beyond formula." Review of Sabah. Montreal Gazette, July 15, 2005.
• Monk, Katherine. "Sabah star understands struggles with tradition." Interview with Arsinée Khanjian. Calgary Herald, June 24, 2005.
• Odeh, Omar. "Culture shock." This Magazine, May-June 2005.
• Quilty, Jim. "Forbidden romance blooms under cover of politeness: Ruba Nadda's 'Sabah,' a twist on the Arab-migrant genre, plays out agreeably in courteous Canada." Review of Sabah. Daily Star (Lebanon), March 30, 2006.
• Young, Deborah. "Coldwater." Review of Sabah. Variety, March 21, 2005.
• Zekas, Rita. "Nadda got Arsinee to blush." Interview with Ruba Nadda. Toronto Star, May 20, 2005.

Cairo Time (2009)  (also known as: "Souvenirs du Caire", "W Kairze")

Journal Articles

• Morrison, Susan. "What Does a Woman Want? Io sono l'amore/I Am Love and Cairo Time." CineAction, no. 80 (Spring 2010): 50-51.

Articles from Newspapers, Magazines, or News Websites

• Bilodeau, Martin. "Festival international du film de Toronto : Egoyan et Nadda, entre autres coïncidences." Le Devoir, September 15, 2009. [in French]
• Bilodeau, Martin. "Romance à l'ombre des pyramides." Interview with Ruba Nadda, Patricia Clarkson. Le Devoir, October 3, 2009. [in French]
• Brownstein, Bill. "Understated love story on simmer." Montreal Gazette, October 9, 2009.
• Daily News Egypt. "Cairo Time: a picturesque travelogue with distorted details." Review of Cairo Time. Daily News Egypt, November 15, 2009.
• Farley, Christopher John. "Speakeasy: Clarkson finds her star turn in 'Time'." Interview with Patricia Clarkson. Wall Street Journal, August 3, 2010.
• Farquharson, Vanessa. "A Heated Affair: Cairo Time; Film stars kept their cool in bustling Egypt." Interview with Patricia Clarkson, Alexander Siddig. National Post, September 16, 2009.
• Heuring, David. "Egypt's Allure." Interview with Luc Montpellier. American Cinematographer, November 2009.
• Hornaday, Ann. "A woman lost and found amid the chaos." Review of Cairo Time. Washington Post, August 20, 2010.
• Horwitz, Simi. "From 'Deep Space' to 'Cairo'." Interview with Alexander Siddig. Back Stage, May 4, 2010.
• Howell, Peter. "Pyramid: A married Canadian writer and a mysterious Egyptian play the 'what if' game in director Ruba Nadda's romance." Review of Cairo Time. Toronto Star, October 9, 2009.
• King, Randall. "Patricia Clarkson owns screen in Cairo Time." Review of Cairo Time. Winnipeg Free Press, October 16, 2009.
• Laurence, Jean-Christophe. "Cairo Time : romance et censure." Interview with Ruba Nadda. La Presse, October 10, 2009. [in French]
• Lavoie, André. "L'amour sur le Nil." Review of Cairo Time. Le Devoir, October 10, 2009. [in French]
• Lepage, Aleksi K. "Amourettes égyptiennes." Review of Cairo Time. La Presse, October 10, 2009. [in French]
• Monk, Katherine. "Mature relationships take their sweet time: Simple romance a rewarding emotional journey." Review of Cairo Time. Calgary Herald, October 16, 2009.
• Morris, Wesley. "Seeing the sights, but little else: Cairo Time never strays beyond borders of romance and social issues." Review of Cairo Time. Boston Globe, August 20, 2010.
• Nayman, Adam. "Une romance en plein chaos." Interview with Ruba Nadda. Métro (Montréal), October 9, 2009. [in French]
• Patch, Nick. "Cairo Time tourné dans le chaos." La Presse, October 7, 2009. [in French]
• Scott, A.O. "A man, a woman and the pyramids." Review of Cairo Time. New York Times, August 6, 2010.
• Strauss, Marise. "Nadda, Iron shoot 'impossible' movie." Interview with Ruba Nadda, Daniel Iron. Playback, August 4, 2008.

DVD Special Features

• Gilmore, Jason, and Fadia Nadda. "The Making of Cairo Time."Cairo Time, DVD. Directed by Ruba Nadda. Toronto: Mongrel Media, 2010.
• Montpellier, Luc, and Ruba Nadda. "Commentary."Cairo Time, DVD. Directed by Ruba Nadda. Toronto: Mongrel Media, 2010.

Inescapable (2012)  (also known as: "Ajojahti", "Entführt in Damaskus", "No Escape")

Articles from Newspapers, Magazines, or News Websites

• Arrazola, Luis-Enrique. "All surprisingly calm on set: Ruba Nadda gives Inescapable cast plenty of breathing room." Interview with Ruba Nadda. National Post, March 16, 2012.
• Braun, Liz. "Flaws in new Nadda film inescapable, too." Review of Inescapable. Toronto Sun, September 14, 2012.
• Braun, Liz. "Pacey's great escape." Interview with Joshua Jackson. Toronto Sun, September 12, 2012.
• Clément, Éric. "La Syrie à coeur... et à sang." Interview with Ruba Nadda. La Presse, September 22, 2012. [in French]
• DeMara, Bruce. "Political chase falters at finish." Review of Inescapable. Toronto Star, September 14, 2012.
• DeMara, Bruce. "Q&A: Nadda's connection to Arab heritage inescapable." Interview with Ruba Nadda. Toronto Star, September 13, 2012.
• Dunlevy, T'cha. "Inescapable truths drive filmmaker: The politics and paranoia of Syria make a perfect backdrop for Ruba Nadda's movie, but she didn't intend to make a thriller." Interview with Ruba Nadda. Montreal Gazette, September 21, 2012.
• Gignac, Martin. "Échapper au passé." Interview with Ruba Nadda. Métro (Montréal), September 21, 2012. [in French]
• Groen, Rick. "Soft Syrian fiction pales before hard Syrian facts." Review of Inescapable. Globe and Mail, September 14, 2012.
• King, Randall. "We'll buy 'desperate father,' but 'action hero' ain't gonna fly." Review of Inescapable. Winnipeg Free Press, November 9, 2012.
• Lavoie, André. "Jamais sans sa fille." Review of Inescapable. Le Devoir, September 22, 2012. [in French]
• Leong, Melissa. "Review: Inescapable is missing in action." Review of Inescapable. National Post, October 5, 2012.
• Leong, Melissa. "Romance to renegade: Alexander Siddig: 'This love affair's been tortured, squeezed and bent out of shape'." Interview with Alexander Siddig. National Post, September 14, 2012.
• Leong, Melissa. "Sister act: Ruba and Fadia Nadda on making Inescapable." Interview with Rubba Nadda, Fadia Nadda. National Post, September 15, 2012.
• Monk, Katherine. "'I just feel lucky to be fulfilling my dream': Ruba Nadda talks about the difficult life of being a Canadian filmmaker." Interview with Ruba Nadda. Ottawa Citizen, September 29, 2012.
• Patch, Nick. "'Inescapable' : La situation des femmes syriennes vue par Ruba Nadda." La Presse, September 13, 2012. [in French]
• Patch, Nick. "Ruba Nadda's Inescapable shines a timely spotlight on Syria." Interview with Ruba Nadda. Globe and Mail, September 6, 2012.
• Renaud, Philippe. "Le méchant régime." Review of Inescapable. La Presse, September 22, 2012. [in French]
• Schneller, Johanna. "Anatomy of a DIY blockbuster: The stars of Inescapable worked hard to make a big-plot thriller on a tiny budget and exhausting schedule." Globe and Mail, September 15, 2012.
• Simon, Alissa. "Inescapable: After middlebrow romance Cairo Time, Canadian helmer-writer Ruba Nadda returns to a Middle Eastern setting to try her hand at political thriller Inescapable; The results do not impress." Review of Inescapable. Variety, September 11, 2012.
• White, Madeleine. "Love story or political thriller? Inescapable is both, Ruba Nadda says." Globe and Mail, September 11, 2012.
• York, Geoffrey. "The secret to South Africa's film boom? 'There's no law here, and that's what we love'." Globe and Mail, March 28, 2012.
• York, Geoffrey. "The story of palpable, suffocating fear." Globe and Mail, March 28, 2012.

October Gale (2014)

Articles from Newspapers, Magazines, or News Websites

• Dargis, Manohla. "Review: 'October Gale' Stars Patricia Clarkson." Review of October Gale. New York Times, March 6, 2015.
• Donadoni, Serena. "October Gale is a character-driven thriller." Review of October Gale. The Village Voice, March 4, 2015.
• Harvey, Dennis. "'October Gale'; Patricia Clarkson reunites with 'Cairo Time' helmer Ruba Nadda for a tepid, underdeveloped thriller." Review of October Gale. Daily Variety, September 13, 2014.
• Knight, Chris. "A perfect storm of coincidence; Grieving widow at a remote cottage has disturbing encounters with men." Review of October Gale. Montreal Gazette, March 27, 2015.
• Ouzounian, Richard. "Weathering the craft of acting; Actress needed to build up her physical strength and tap into her inner rage to film October Gale." Interview with Patricia Clarkson. Toronto Star, March 28, 2015.
• Patch, Nick. "Patricia Clarkson, Ruba Nadda endure 'October Gale' shoot." Interview with Ruba Nadda, Patricia Clarkson. Telegraph-Journal (Saint John, N.B.), March 25, 2015.
• Schneller, Johanna. "Cast of October Gale pulls no punches." Interview with Ruba Nadda, Patricia Clarkson, Scott Speedman. Globe and Mail, April 3, 2015.
• Tucker, Rebecca. "A new age; Patricia Clarkson finds a collaborator who finally recognizes the power of middle-aged women." Interview with Patricia Clarkson. National Post, March 26, 2015.
• Wheeler, Brad. "October Gale: Canadian thriller builds up to nothing much." Review of October Gale. Globe and Mail, March 27, 2015.
• Wheeler, Brad. "Q&A: Patricia Clarkson on her Canadian-made movie, filming in Georgian Bay and her hunky co-star." Interview with Patricia Clarkson. Globe and Mail, March 27, 2015.

Archival Collections

• Cinemathèque québécoise (Montréal, Québec)
• Library and Archives Canada (Ottawa, Ontario)