In the shell of a nut

I'll start this first blog by telling you my story, ever so briefly...

The facts: I'm 29 now. I was born in Amman, Jordan. Moved to the US when I was 13. Lived in Ohio for 14 years. Studied Business Marketing at the Ohio state University, then went right into the telecommunications industry working for Inter-Tel Technologies. I had a very rewarding career selling voice and data solutions to big companies across Ohio and the US. I gained expertise in PBX platforms, voice over IP, Cisco routers and switches, call center software applications, video conferencing... you name it. I built solid business relationships, made lots of money, bought lots of fun toys, and then one day woke up and realized that I had lost sight of my dream. I always wanted to make movies.

So on April 12, 2003, I had everything packed, and I set out on a cross-country drive to Los Angeles. I would start over from scratch. While using my telecom background by day to keep an income, I invested in a nice Canon XL1 camera, a light kit, a Mac Powerbook with Final Cut editing software and made a group of friends, mostly very talented actors. I wrote short scripts and we made movies together and had fun like kids playing in a schoolyard. I felt alive again. I love LA because of the creative stimulus you can generate when collaborating to create movies. You can watch the movies on my site (www.QuaProductions.com)

I've been in LA for nearly two and a half years now, and I've directed 17 shorts films, made a bunch of other short skits, and wrote two screenplays. It's very very satisfying to be following your heart. People used to ask "When are you going to get married?" Now they know it's the last thing on my mind. There are so many more exciting things ahead than settling down.
There's a right time for everything, and now is the time to dream big dreams and work the plan to make them happen.

Having said that, I am about to begin my MFA in Film Directing at the AFI, the American Film Instit