Graduate – Basil Khalil MA Screen Project Development
Basil's first film job was as a second-assistant director on Elia Suleiman's award winning film Divine Intervention (2002) He set up production company Code 81 Films in 2004 and went on to produce a number of shorts, animations and by 2005 his first feature documentary Replay Revenge (2005).
Since graduating from the Screen Academy Scotland in 2006 Basil has produced award winning short film Shooters which screened internationally at 11 festivals including the Palm Springs Film Festival (2009) as well as documentaries for Current TV and Al Jazeera. He is currently in development with Julian Friedmann the UK literary agent on an adaptation of Nathalie Abi-Ezzi's novel Girl Made of Dust. Set in Lebanon during the Israeli invasion of the 1980's, the film is to be directed by Wafa'a Halawi. Basil met Julian Friedman while still at the Screen Academy when he took part in the ENGAGE project - a MEDIA funded initiative to foster collaboration between filmmakers in Europe. Wafa'a Halawi is also an ENGAGE alumni. The project will be a French-Brazilian-Lebanese co-production and will be financed in 2011-12.
Basil is also currently developing his debut feature as writer-director, A Gaza Weekend (formerly known as Kosher Swine Flu). The project has gone to the Torino Film Lab and the Rawi-Sundance screenwriters lab in 2010. In May 2011 Basil was awarded a development grant from the Doha Film Institute, and got French and German co-producers on board. The project will be a French-German co-production and will begin shooting in autumn-winter 2012.
Basil was recently profiled in Screen International as one of the Middle East's rising filmmaking stars in Colin Brown's article Arab Talent in Bloom.
Basil says :
"I believe that my time at Screen Academy was an eye opening experience which deepened my knowledge of producing and gave me the hands on tools which normal film schools tend to neglect, ranging from legal contracts, rights, distribution to approaching talent and marketing our films. We had access to a wide range of industry professionals who gave us transparent advice about their work, films and feedback on our projects. However the best part is Screen Academy's ongoing support to its alumni through several mentoring schemes and training workshops, all of which have helped me get my career on track in the "real world". As a result, I am currently in development on a feature film with Julian Freidmann, a literary agent and former lecturer I met on the ENGAGE workshop; one of Screen Academy's follow up training schemes, and my pitching and film packaging skills I learned at Screen Academy have gained me a lot of praise, opening many doors for me in the film and TV industry."
