ULTIMATE DOCS COMPETITION

BRITAIN’S FIRST SUICIDE BOMBERS

UK, 2006, 89 min., English

Director: Jonathan Hacker
Producer: Jonathan Hacker
Script: Jonathan Hacker
Cinematography: Mike Robinson & Steven Gray
Editing: Bob Woodward
Music: Annabelle Pangborn
Sound: Tim Wheeler
Production company: Chameleon TV
Print Source:
Chameleon TV, Greatminster House
Lister Hill,
Horsforth, Leeds
LS18 5DL
Tel.: 0113 205 0040
Fax: 0113 281 9454
e-mail: allen@chameleontv.com
www.chameleontv.com


Britain's First Suicide Bombers

Just before Omar Khan Sharif died, his sister sent him a message: "We all have to be firm and focused with reality, as time is slipping away and there really is no time to be weak and emotional. Your guarantee is for the eternal ahead. There are no goodbyes, just a lapse of time. When we see you again it will be like only half a day has passed. Stay focused and determined. We have no time for emotions." Just a few days later Omar Khan Sharif strapped a bomb to his back and set out with his friend, Asif Hanif, to a Tel Aviv bar called Mike's Place. Filmmaker Jonathan Hacker uses this incident to trace the path to the July 7th, 2005 terrorist attacks in London. Based on court transcripts of the subsequent trial involving Sharif’s relatives and associates, this dramatized documentary pieces together the lives of Britain's first two Suicide Bombers. The film spends a lot of time on Sharif’s life partly because of the subsequent prosecution of his sister for incitement, and his brother and wife for failure to alert the authorities. But perhaps also to unpack the confounding fact that Sharif exemplified the enigma of the fully integrated terrorist. He had spent time at public school, had won a place at university and lived in an ordinary suburban terrace house. If someone this successful and “normal” could be turned into a human bomb, then anyone can.

Jonathan Hacker is one of Britain’s most established documentary directors. After graduating from Oxford University, he worked for commercials director Peter Webb and then won a scholarship to USC Film School in Los Angeles. On returning to the UK he wrote “Take 10” a book published by OUP on British Cinema, and embarked on a career in documentaries. He has won several awards including BAFTA and RTS.

Filmography:

The Hidden Children (2007);
Britain’s First Suicide Bombers (2006);
Hotel on Sea (2005), TV series;
Tokyo Terror (2004);
Through Hell for Hitler (2003);
Witchfinder General (2002);
The Last Surrender (2001);
The Bill (various episodes)(1999-2000);
Secret Agent (1998);
Turning Points (1998);
The Short Walk (1995).

SUNDAY,APRIL 1 AT 3:00 PM./PORTAGE THEATRE

THURSDAY, APRIL 5 AT 3:00 PM./CHOPIN THEATRE

FRIDAY, APRIL 6 AT 1:00 PM./GALLERY THEATRE