WAFilms Launches Fund to Finance New Original Content for Streaming Services
Creator of Original Content, Commercials, Music Videos for Adobe, Reba McEntire, Amazon, Cheerios, Google, and Others Undertakes Feature Film
Memphis, Tennessee–(Newsfile Corp. – May 27, 2020) – Waheed AlQawasmi is bringing Hollywood and Silicon Valley to the Mid-South, at least those elements of creative prowess, cinematic technologies and financial resources necessary to produce feature films and original content.
AlQawasmi, who heads WAFilms (www.WAFilms.com), today announced the launch of his firm’s original content development fund, which will finance the creation of original content to meet the demand from streaming platforms such as Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, and Hulu. The fund, focused on creative diversity and quality, will produce a variety of scripted TV shows and feature films.
Work begins this fall in Memphis on the company’s first original production, Jacir, an Arabic/English-language indie feature film with stars Oscar-nominated actress Lorraine Bracco and Lebanese actor Malek Rahbani. Future projects will be produced in Memphis, New Orleans, and Los Angeles, and on location in Canada and Germany.
AlQawasmi expects the fund dedicated to financing creative ventures to spark new opportunities, benefit workers in the region’s entertainment industry and help businesses get back to business amid the COVID crisis.
“Our aim is to be a little economic engine. We want to help create new jobs and new opportunities as we work through this national health emergency and foster brighter days ahead,” said AlQawasmi, 33, who started his Emmy Award-winning company five years ago after he immigrated to America as a teenager, graduated from Germantown High School and served as a creative director for Fox Television.
Memphis and Shelby County Film Commissioner Linn Sitler said, “The announcement of business expansion and new opportunities is wonderful and well-timed news.”
As WAFilms ramps up production activities, AlQawasmi said its teams will operate in line with COVID-related guidelines developed by the CDC, Film Unions, Health Departments, and Hollywood task forces to help ensure health and safety of crews, talent and clients on the job.
“We have personal protective equipment (PPE), medics and producers who are trained in health and safety compliance to make sure everything we film is safe for crews, talent, and clients,” he said. “Our efforts are coordinated by our in-house producer Robert Saba, a veteran of the film industry and a trusted colleague for unions.
“We have developed competitive strength from the national commercials we have created for national clients and from the international co-productions we have undertaken in recent years,” AlQawasmi said. “These opportunities have enabled us to grow more sophisticated in our understanding of the business aspects of production, legal and compliance.”
About WAFilms
WAFilms, is an Emmy Award-winning creative original content and production company. The firm and its award-winning directors create commercials, music videos, and original content for some of the nation’s top companies. It works in partnership with some of the world’s top advertising agencies, and production companies including: VMLY&R, Anthem Pictures, and RSA Films. See, hear, and learn more at www.WAFilms.com.
For media inquiries about WAFilms and its plans, contact Bob Hetherington at bob@bobhetherington.com, 901-355-2153.
For media inquiries about the film Jacir, contact Deborah Gilels at ddgilels@prodigy.net or 818-648-9513.
To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/56682