Like Father, Like Son

Malek Akkad grew up on movie sets; those movies produced by his late Syrian-born, US-based father Moustapha Akkad, a legendary Arab-American filmmaker with historical cinema epics to his name. As a director, Moustapha Akkad was the man behind Al-Risalah (The Messenger) (1976), Omar Mukhtar and Lion of the Desert (1981). As a producer, he was the driving force behind the immortal horror film series Halloween. Unfortunately, Moustapha’s life (and the life of his daughter, Rima) was cut short in 2005 by a suicide bombing in Amman. Unlike his brothers and sisters who used to briefly visit the film sets, eight-year-old Malek never wanted to leave his father’s side. At a young age, Akkad started to experiment with his 8mm camera to create amateur films. Growing up, he followed in his father’s footsteps by studying filmmaking then becoming a Hollywood producer. Now he is the CEO and chairman of Trancas Films, with an office filled with the eerie white masks worn by the famous Halloween killer Michael Myers. Malek has continued on as a producer for the new Halloween series but plans to return to directing soon. Egypt Today speaks to Malek Akkad about his father’s legacy and his own plans for the future. Edited excerpts: What is your fondest memory of being on set alongside your father? When did you realize you wanted to be in the film industry like him? During one summer vacation, I traveled with him and a film crew to the Libyan Desert where he was shooting scenes for Omar Mukhtar. It was an exciting experience and I remember I was holding on to his pants and kept on asking him “What’s this and what’s that?” On set, he was always calm, never raised his voice and never grew tired of explaining stuff to me. I started to work in the film industry when I was 15, doing practically everything. The job title was production assistant but I was really a runner; sometimes I was sweeping the set, sometimes I was making coffee. But I loved it. When I got into college, I remember that I postponed my studies for a while and my father told me “Finish your studies and get a real career!” This was funny coming from Moustapha Akkad, who was behaving like a typical Arab father when it came to his kids and their future. He was worried about me and hoped I had enough passion and patience to venture into filmmaking like he did. I eventually graduated with a film degree from USC as he did years before. Halloween became a long-running series with its eighth film being released in 2002. In 2007 you decided to remake the first film with Rob Zombie, the rocker who became a horror writer-director. How do you compare Zombie to the original Halloween director John Carpenter? It is hard to compare one to the other because style is something very subjective and creative. I always say that it is easy to be a critic but the hardest thing is to direct a film and put it out to the world. Carpenter is a legend because what he did in the original Halloween stood the test of time even though he had to shoot it quickly and compose the music himself due to budget constraints. I remember that we were working on the ninth Halloween when my father [died in the attack], and I said that I would not do anymore Halloween sequels. But at the same time I wanted to start something new to show the world that Moustapha Akkad’s work and energy is still with us. Rob Zombie was a perfect choice because he directed two horror films before the Halloween remake and had a unique vision to take it in a new direction. Zombie returned yet again to direct a sequel, Halloween II, in 2007, which was quite different than the sequel of 1981. It became a psychological study of Myers and his family. I can honestly say that this second film doesn’t hold up as well as the first because Zombie wanted to give it a gritty dark look by using a 16mm camera. Because he was the director, I supported his creative decision for the picture. What’s your opinion about what’s happening now in Hollywood with the remaking, re-imagining and rebooting of films? I have mixed feelings about this because I can see both sides. In general, I don’t like it, but I don’t want to sound hypocritical because I have done it myself, as a tribute to my father. As a producer, I chose to do it from a business point of view. But as a fan, I wish that there were more original content out there. After making Al-Risalah and Omar Mukhtar with Anthony Quinn, Moustapha Akkad dreamed of making The Crusades with Sean Connery as Saladin. Is it possible for you to realize his dream? I have amazing scripts that involve the history of the Arab world including one I am working on now about Andalusia. It’s called The Princess of Alhambra, which was finished by the late Robert Bolt, the Oscar-winning screenwriter who gave us Dr. Zhivago and Lawrence of Arabia. As for Saladin, which I consider a big message from my father, maybe we can do it in the next five years because many people expressed interest in taking part in it. I am also open to coproduce projects with filmmakers from the Arab or the entire world who have the talent and enthusiasm to make good films. You started to experiment with an 8mm camera as child, but eventually you became a producer. Do you ever think about directing your own films? In this business, you should be flexible and you need to seize opportunities and flow where the river takes you. Before and after my graduation, I did cinematography and directed commercials and music videos for singers like Kadim Al Sahir, then I made one film called Psychic Murders back in 2002. During the last six years, I worked more as a producer and CEO to popularize the new Halloween series. At the beginning of 2011, I told myself it was time to go back to the creative process and let my employees run the day-to-day operations of the company. So last May, I started to return to behind the camera and worked on a new music video called Tomorrow/Bokra, shot in Morocco and Qatar with leading music composer Quincy Jones, who sees it as an Arab follow-up to his famous song We Are the World. Among its singers are Egyptian Amr Diab, Lebanese Majida El Roumi, Iraqi Kadim Al Sahir and Tunisian Saber El Rebai. It is a charity single [designed] to raise money for children’s arts and culture in the Middle East and Africa. The film I am preparing to shoot here in Los Angeles is called Stuck, which is an edge-of-your-seat action thriller. After the New Year, we will start to shoot a new Halloween, which will be the first one in 3D, and it is scheduled for an October 2012 release. My vision for this one is to go back to basics, the fun ride and not the darker tone.