Ocean of Pearls
Encyclopedia
Ocean of Pearls is a movie released in 2008
. It is the first film directed by Sarab Singh Neelam, a Sikh
gastroenterologist from Troy, Michigan
. It was written by Neelam and Veerendra Prasad.
, and the Audience Choice Award at the 2008 Toronto ReelWorld Film Festival.
The film showed at the 10th International Film Festival, Mumbai, in March 2008. and the Cannes Film Festival by iDream Independent Pictures.
who directed Out Of Africa.
Omid Abtahi
, previously in Over There
stars as Amrit, Navi Rawat
from The O.C.
and Numb3rs
plays Amrit's girlfriend, Ajay Meht of Americanizing Shelley
plays his father, Ron Canada
plays the Detroit doctor who tempts Amrit to his new post, Heather McComb
plays his attractive colleague, Todd Babcock plays a Senator's son vying for the same post as Amrit, and Brenda Strong
of Desperate Housewives
plays a transplant patient. Local members of the Sikh community appeared as extras and offered their gurdwara
for production and sets.
Jim Burnstein, who previously worked on Renaissance Man, was an executive producer and assisted with the script. Burnstein first met Neelam in the late 1980s, when he pitched filming a Middle Eastern epic, but Burnstein was interested in Neelam's own life story. He advised Neelam to change the main character from a Caucasian doctor to a Sikh. Jeff Dowd
was another executive producer.
said "it sounds heavy-handed, and it is. Although the film looks professional, it feels like a soap opera with a message."
Asia Pacific Arts included the film in its top ten films of 2008, saying that "its domestic and romantic melodrama feels true and never sensational, while its passion to reveal social injustice is never didactic."
The Detroit News
and the Detroit Metro Times both gave the film a C+ rating, Tom Long concluding that "as a vehicle for demystifying the Sikh life while again highlighting the confusion of the modern world, "Ocean of Pearls" works well indeed."
Variety argued that the "mix of tepid hospital intrigue plus underdeveloped cultural/relationship conflicts feels like a routine TV episode stretched to feature length, with little dramatic urgency or cinematic style to render its good intentions compelling."
SF Weekly said "Mishandled, this film would be very funny in a bad way, but Neelam skirts the very real perils of risibility."
2008 in film
This is a list of all major films made in 2008.-Highest-grossing films:Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top grossing films that were first released in the USA in 2008...
. It is the first film directed by Sarab Singh Neelam, a Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
gastroenterologist from Troy, Michigan
Troy, Michigan
Troy is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan, and is a suburb of Detroit. The population was 80,980 at the 2010 census, making it the 11th-largest city in Michigan by population, and the largest city in Oakland County...
. It was written by Neelam and Veerendra Prasad.
Plot
Dr. Amrit Singh, a young Sikh surgeon, moves from Toronto to Detroit to take a position at a new transplant facility, leaving behind his family and Indian girlfriend. The film follows Amrit's struggles against the pressures to assimilate, including considering removing his turban and cutting his hair, racial discrimination, an unfair medical system in which uninsured patients cannot receive transplants, and romantic temptation in the shape of an attractive colleague. The film is semi-autobiographical, and reflects the experience of Sikhs in America post-9/11.Awards and screenings
Ocean of Pearls won Best Feature Film at the 2009 Detroit Windsor International Film Festival, the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Choice Award at the 2008 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film FestivalLos Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival
The Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival – formerly known as VC FilmFest – is an annual film festival presented by Visual Communications . It was established in 1983 as a vehicle to promote Asian Pacific American and Asian international cinema. The festival fulfills a unique mission in...
, and the Audience Choice Award at the 2008 Toronto ReelWorld Film Festival.
The film showed at the 10th International Film Festival, Mumbai, in March 2008. and the Cannes Film Festival by iDream Independent Pictures.
Cast and crew
Director Sarab Neelam lived in India until his family moved to Toronto when he was aged 10. He spent ten years learning filmmaking while working as a hospital doctor before making the film, taking advice from Kurt LuedtkeKurt Luedtke
Kurt Luedtke is an American screenwriter. He is best known for the screenplay for Out of Africa which won him an Academy Award.-External links:...
who directed Out Of Africa.
Omid Abtahi
Omid Abtahi
Omid Abtahi is an American actor of Iranian origin.- Biography :Before moving to the United States, Abtahi and his family lived in Europe and the Middle East.He grew up in Orange County, California, and graduated from University High School in Irvine....
, previously in Over There
Over There
"Over There" is a 1917 song popular with United States soldiers in both world wars.It was written by George M. Cohan during World War I. Notable early recordings include versions by Nora Bayes, Enrico Caruso, Billy Murray, and Charles King....
stars as Amrit, Navi Rawat
Navi Rawat
Navi Rawat is an American television actress, known for her roles as Theresa Diaz on the drama series The O.C. and math prodigy Amita Ramanujan on the drama series Numb3rs. She is the niece of Prem Rawat....
from The O.C.
The O.C.
The O.C. is an American teen drama television series that originally aired on the Fox television network in the United States from August 5, 2003, to February 21, 2007, running a total of four seasons...
and Numb3rs
NUMB3RS
Numb3rs is an American television drama which premiered on CBS on January 23, 2005, and concluded on March 12, 2010. The series was created by Nicolas Falacci and Cheryl Heuton, and follows FBI Special Agent Don Eppes and his mathematical genius brother, Charlie Eppes , who helps Don solve crimes...
plays Amrit's girlfriend, Ajay Meht of Americanizing Shelley
Americanizing Shelley
Americanizing Shelley is a Hollywood romantic comedy film with some Bollywood elements. It stars Beau Bridges, Namrata Singh Gujral playing the title role of Shelley, Shaheen Khan, Wil Wheaton, Noureen DeWulf, Tony Yalda and Ajay Mehta....
plays his father, Ron Canada
Ron Canada
Ron Canada is an American actor. He began as a television newscaster during the 1970s in the Baltimore-Washington area mainly on WBAL-TV Channel 11 in Baltimore, until the early 1980s when he became an actor. He was a tour guide at NBC studios at 30 Rockefeller Plaza...
plays the Detroit doctor who tempts Amrit to his new post, Heather McComb
Heather McComb
Heather McComb is an American actress.McComb started acting at age 2 in a commercial for Publisher's Clearing House. When she appeared in the telefilm Generation X in 1996, she became the first actress to portray the X-Men character of Jubilee on screen...
plays his attractive colleague, Todd Babcock plays a Senator's son vying for the same post as Amrit, and Brenda Strong
Brenda Strong
Brenda Lee Strong is an American actress and yoga instructor, known for her roles as as Capt. Deladier in the 1997 hit movie Starship Troopers and Mary Alice Young on the television show Desperate Housewives....
of Desperate Housewives
Desperate Housewives
Desperate Housewives is an American television comedy-drama series created by Marc Cherry and produced by ABC Studios and Cherry Productions. Executive producer Cherry serves as Showrunner. Other executive producers since the fourth season include Marc Cherry, Bob Daily, George W...
plays a transplant patient. Local members of the Sikh community appeared as extras and offered their gurdwara
Gurdwara
A Gurdwara , meaning the Gateway to the Guru, is the place of worship for Sikhs, the followers of Sikhism. A Gurdwara can be identified from a distance by tall flagpoles bearing the Nishan Sahib ....
for production and sets.
Jim Burnstein, who previously worked on Renaissance Man, was an executive producer and assisted with the script. Burnstein first met Neelam in the late 1980s, when he pitched filming a Middle Eastern epic, but Burnstein was interested in Neelam's own life story. He advised Neelam to change the main character from a Caucasian doctor to a Sikh. Jeff Dowd
Jeff Dowd
Jeff Dowd is an American film producer and political activist best known as a member of the "Seattle Seven," who went to jail following a violent protest against the Vietnam war....
was another executive producer.
Reception
The San Francisco ChronicleSan Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
said "it sounds heavy-handed, and it is. Although the film looks professional, it feels like a soap opera with a message."
Asia Pacific Arts included the film in its top ten films of 2008, saying that "its domestic and romantic melodrama feels true and never sensational, while its passion to reveal social injustice is never didactic."
The Detroit News
The Detroit News
The Detroit News is one of the two major newspapers in the U.S. city of Detroit, Michigan. The paper began in 1873, when it rented space in the rival Free Press's building. The News absorbed the Detroit Tribune on February 1, 1919, the Detroit Journal on July 21, 1922, and on November 7, 1960,...
and the Detroit Metro Times both gave the film a C+ rating, Tom Long concluding that "as a vehicle for demystifying the Sikh life while again highlighting the confusion of the modern world, "Ocean of Pearls" works well indeed."
Variety argued that the "mix of tepid hospital intrigue plus underdeveloped cultural/relationship conflicts feels like a routine TV episode stretched to feature length, with little dramatic urgency or cinematic style to render its good intentions compelling."
SF Weekly said "Mishandled, this film would be very funny in a bad way, but Neelam skirts the very real perils of risibility."