International News In Los Angeles

Ziad Saliba

The Drive Behind The Man

When Ziad (Zee) Saliba, from Lebanon, released ‘Canticles Of The Sheep,’ a dark tome on aspects of human nature through difficult and unusual circumstances, and the oft frailty of human spirit, it was not well received. Set in the sinister backdrop of the boroughs of New York City, the darkness and sadness of the story left many readers asking ‘why?’ According to Zee, Canticles Of The Sheep is not a novel for the masses, but instead a novel that serves a dual purpose. First, the story was meant to help the minority of people who could relate to the horrific stories of the three main characters create a strong and lasting connection to Zee. The second and probably more important reason for writing ‘Canticles Of The Sheep’ was that it was something that he needed to do for himself… to explore his talents and help him progress as a writer.

And what a talent he is?

Zee’s unique writing style, influenced in part by other ‘dark’ novelists such as Edgar Allen Poe and Stephen King has given him a unique, but rabid following.

He is not a household name yet, but in Zee’s own words, he is just getting started. He was born to be an artist.

Zee studied under famed playwright Tim McNeil for a few months at the Stella Adler Academy. Later, he attended The New York Film Academy and majored in Screenwriting. The real training, however, came outside all that.

Growing as a writer and artist daily, Zee credits every day experiences and focusing on his work for this. His move to Los Angeles last year was the final piece in the puzzle for Zee. That, he says, cemented his direction in life. In Zee’s own words “If you wanna be a clown you gotta join the circus, right? I willingly chose this medium, and whatever faults or seedy notions LA projects, it's still the place to be. It's this community of struggling artists and liberals and expressionists that I've shamelessly fallen in love with.”

The Hollywood personality Zee would most like to work with is Gary Oldman. This seems right in line with the rest of Ziad's dark and mysterious character. Mr. Oldman himself has been at the center of many dark and unique projects throughout his career in Hollywood. Zee and Gary Oldman would seemingly be a perfect complement to each other.

Asked what he has coming up in the future, Zee mentions for the near term, a dark whimsical romance entitled "Clementine" and developing a cool comedy called "The Dreamboat and other Twisted Fairy Tales."

Longer term, Zee plans to keep growing and honing his craft. He is definitely one to watch.

Dinner Party

by Masive Films

Unique British film making hits Los Angeles Online masivefilms.com

The Dinner Party is a film not to be missed. This documentary style romance gives you twists, turns and controversy which will leave you breathless. A hearty mix of laughter, shock, and thrills guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat. The performances are brutally honest, true and wholly believable. Already winning awards internationally as well as collecting numerous nominations, The Dinner Party which has been made in a unique way, has just returned after its first viewing in LA, California and the Film Industry experts loved it! They heralded Si Wall’s latest work as ‘The Birth of a new genre of film making’ ,which is making waves all over the Hollywood arena. There have been very few filmmakers who have had this accolade thrust at them so early in their Feature Film career. The funds from this will go back into the next film, no fat salaries, no commissions to pay, just right back to a team of dedicated filmmakers. This is a new breed of filmmakers, not interested in financial gain or studio politics, but solely focused on doing things a little differently and by raising awareness of the film and selling it directly to film lovers, they are then free to go out and create their next offering.