Hanan Kattan
Encyclopedia
Hanan Kattan is a Jordanian of Palestinian origin. She is a business woman and film producer
. Hanan was born in Jordan
, and lives with her partner Shamim Sarif
in London; they have two sons. Kattan created Enlightenment Productions in partnership with Shamim Sarif.
magazine has labeled her method of work beauty with a conscience.
Hanan has produced two feature films through Enlightenment productions : 1950s South African drama/love story The World Unseen
and contemporary urban romantic comedy I Can't Think Straight
. The films garnered both audience and critical acclaim at film festivals across the globe and received several awards.
Both the films starred Lisa Ray
and Sheetal Sheth
in leading roles and were directed by Shamim Sarif
.
Her latest venture is Enlightenment Business Solutions, an Internet marketing company.
With her partner, Shamim Sarif, Hanan is also the founder of the Sarif Kattan Foundation whose most recent project was TEDx HolyLand, an independent TED
event, bringing remarkable Palestinian and Israeli women together in Jerusalem for a conference. This led to a feature documentary that Hanan has just completed as producer and co-director, called The House of Tomorrow.
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
. Hanan was born in Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
, and lives with her partner Shamim Sarif
Shamim Sarif
Shamim Sarif is a novelist and filmmaker of South Asian and South African heritage. Her roots inspired her to write her award-winning debut novel, The World Unseen, which explores issues of race, gender and sexuality, which she later adapted into a film starring Lisa Ray, shown at the London Film...
in London; they have two sons. Kattan created Enlightenment Productions in partnership with Shamim Sarif.
Career
Hanan's first businesses was a successful toiletries distribution company. She created her own brands and an entirely new product category that of holistic premium mass-market products. Marie ClaireMarie Claire
Marie Claire is a monthly women's magazine first published in France but also distributed in other countries with editions specific to them and in their languages. While each country shares its own special voice with its audience, the United States edition focuses on women around the world and...
magazine has labeled her method of work beauty with a conscience.
Hanan has produced two feature films through Enlightenment productions : 1950s South African drama/love story The World Unseen
The World Unseen
The World Unseen is a 2008 historical drama film written and directed by Shamim Sarif, adapted from her own novel. The film is set in 1950s Cape Town, South Africa during the beginning of apartheid...
and contemporary urban romantic comedy I Can't Think Straight
I Can't Think Straight
I Can't Think Straight is a 2007 romance movie about a London-based Jordanian of Palestinian descent, Tala, who is preparing for an elaborate wedding. A turn of events causes her to have an affair and subsequently fall in love with another woman, Leyla, a British Indian. The movie is distributed by...
. The films garnered both audience and critical acclaim at film festivals across the globe and received several awards.
Both the films starred Lisa Ray
Lisa Ray
Lisa Ray , born 4 April 1972, is a Canadian actress and former model.-Early life:Lisa Ray was born in Toronto to a Bengali Indian father and a Polish mother and grew up in the suburb of Etobicoke...
and Sheetal Sheth
Sheetal Sheth
Sheetal Sheth is an actress who is known for her wide range of roles in an impressive body of work in film, television, and theater. She has starred in many feature films, perhaps best known for starring opposite Albert Brooks in Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World...
in leading roles and were directed by Shamim Sarif
Shamim Sarif
Shamim Sarif is a novelist and filmmaker of South Asian and South African heritage. Her roots inspired her to write her award-winning debut novel, The World Unseen, which explores issues of race, gender and sexuality, which she later adapted into a film starring Lisa Ray, shown at the London Film...
.
Her latest venture is Enlightenment Business Solutions, an Internet marketing company.
With her partner, Shamim Sarif, Hanan is also the founder of the Sarif Kattan Foundation whose most recent project was TEDx HolyLand, an independent TED
TED (conference)
TED is a global set of conferences owned by the private non-profit Sapling Foundation, formed to disseminate "ideas worth spreading"....
event, bringing remarkable Palestinian and Israeli women together in Jerusalem for a conference. This led to a feature documentary that Hanan has just completed as producer and co-director, called The House of Tomorrow.
Filmography
- I Can't Think StraightI Can't Think StraightI Can't Think Straight is a 2007 romance movie about a London-based Jordanian of Palestinian descent, Tala, who is preparing for an elaborate wedding. A turn of events causes her to have an affair and subsequently fall in love with another woman, Leyla, a British Indian. The movie is distributed by...
(2008) - The World UnseenThe World UnseenThe World Unseen is a 2008 historical drama film written and directed by Shamim Sarif, adapted from her own novel. The film is set in 1950s Cape Town, South Africa during the beginning of apartheid...
(2008) - The Dreaming Spires (Under Production)
- Despite the Falling Snow (Under Production)
- The House of Tomorrow (2011)