DEM Productions Signs with the Smith Young Talent Agency (SYT)

November 2nd, 2021 - Atlanta, GA. ~ Dalia Anani and Hena Mustafa are the founders of DEM Productions, a creative collaboration between two Palestinian-American storytellers committed to creating characters on-screen that join a growing number of Arab-Americans in creating content to help their marginalized culture in film and television productions and to feel authentically seen.

The tide is turning in how Arab-Americans have been traditionally depicted in films in recent years. In March of 2019, Hollywood witnessed the coronation of the first-ever Arab American Best Actor award winner, Rami Malek, for his role in "Bohemian Rhapsody", as social media erupted in celebration.

Dalia and Hena feel that the industry is in a time of over-correction in terms of representation. Instead of deepening the problem by haphazardly perpetuating stereotypes, our vision is to create multi-dimensional POC, queer, disabled, and mentally ill characters.

Their series 'DEM' is 'I May Destroy You' meets 'Insecure' and is about two codependent cousins, an attention-addicted lesbian and an obsessive-compulsive artist supporting each other through the tensions of the first-generation Arab-American experience.

Hena Mustafa is a first-generation lesbian Palestinian-American screenwriter, filmmaker, and poet. Her educational background in Psychology, criminology, and philosophy inform much of her musings. She works as a TV writer and content developer in Atlanta and New York City. Her writing aesthetic is sensual, textured, and raw.

Dalia Anani is a first-generation Arab-American artist, writer, and filmmaker based in California. She holds an MFA and has a life-long creative love affair with assemblage and subtlety across all mediums. This translates on screen as mysterious, surprising, and alluring through both complicated character development and decadent imagery.

"We are very excited to work with Dalia and Hena for many reasons, not to mention that they are just awesome writers with several series concepts in development for pitch, but also because we think that what they are writing about is more reflective of the America we live in and they are unapologetic in telling stories from their experiences as two urban contemporary Palestinian American women" says Smith Young Talent Agent, Robert Walker.

For more about Dalia and Hena, check out their website at: https://www.dem-productions.com/