Lecture title: Pitfalls of Representation in US and Arab Cinemas

Guest Speaker: Dr. Waleed F. Mahdi, Associate Professor of US-Arab Cultural Politics Departments of International and Area Studies, Modern Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics, and Film and Media Studies.

In this lecture, Mahdi offers a comparative analysis of representational trajectories, dynamics and challenges in United States and Arab cinemas. The lecture will examine the historical and contemporary challenges, opportunities and implications of constructing the “self” and the “other” within these cultural contexts.

Mahdi specializes in US-Arab cultural politics. He has received several national and international awards for his work. His peer-reviewed research has been published in American Quarterly, The Journal of American Ethnic History, and The Journal of Cinema and Media Studies. His first book, "Arab Americans in Film: From Hollywood and Egyptian Stereotypes to Self-Representation," explores the construction and evolution of Arab American identity in Hollywood, Egyptian, and Arab American cinemas. Dr. Mahdi currently serves as the President of the Arab American Studies Association.