Chaldean Filmmakers: Sam Sako
Sam Sako with Tom Hanks in 1985 on the set of the Man with One Red Shoe.
By Weam Namou
A foreign language coach in Hollywood, Chaldean American Sam Sako is often called on by producers to coach some of the world’s best known on-screen talent, including Leonardo DiCaprio, Omar Sharif, Mark Strong, Russell Crowe, Oscar Isaac, Brad Dourif, Tim Roth, Scott Glenn, Danny Trejo, and Freddy Rodriguez.
“To me, working with major actors has become a job,” says Sako.
Sako recently produced Pomegranate, the first Iraqi American feature film led by women talent (yours truly). The film began circulating festivals earlier this year and so far, it has earned awards, nominations, and official selections from over a dozen international film festivals, including New York International Women Festival, Santa Barbara International Movie Awards, La Femme Independent Film Festival (Paris, France), Luleå International Film Festival (Sweden), Rome Prisma Film Awards (Rome, Italy), Birsamunda International Film Awards (India), and Amsterdam Movie Fest, among others.
“The awards that Pomegranate has won is just the beginning,” said Sako. “There’s more to come.”
Once he committed to this project, Sam made sure to see it through even though it took years of hard work. “If I believe in something, I always go the extra mile and I don’t back down until I get the job done,” he said.
Sam’s nickname (“Sam of All Trades”) comes from his broad knowledge of the industry resulting from over four decades of work in Hollywood as an actor, casting director, voiceover artist, Middle East cultural consultant, dialect coach, ADR performer, cinematographer, editor, producer, and director.
Sam with Weam Namou on the set of Pomegranate
He’s worked extensively on independent and major studio domestic and foreign releases, particularly those for Middle East markets. His best- known films include Body of Lies, Green Zone, Hidalgo, The Passion of the Christ, Iron Man, Mad Max: Fury Road, Beverly Hills Cop II, and RoboCop. Major television projects include Over There, Touch, NCIS, Weeds, Homeland, and Lethal Weapon.
Knowing Chaldean families expected their children to become engineers, doctors, and lawyers, Sako initially studied engineering, but he didn’t continue that path. “It wasn’t my thing,” he said. “I was always fascinated by Hollywood and American films.”
Born in Baghdad, Sako left Iraq shortly before the Iran-Iraq war. As a young man, he lived in different places throughout the Middle East where he learned many languages and some Arabic dialects including Egyptian, Khaliji, Yemeni, Lebanese, Moroccan, Saudi, Farsi and Dari/Pashtune. Soon after his high school graduation, his family moved to Greece. There, he learned a new culture and language, and soon moved to the United States. He lived in Detroit for two years, where he received an A.A. degree in Liberal Arts from Wayne County Community College.
“I couldn’t stand the cold in Michigan, so I moved to California and never looked back,” he said.
In California, he earned a B.A. in Motion Picture and Television Production from California State University Northridge. He also continued studies in cinema at UCLA.
After 9/11, movies shifted to those with Middle Eastern themes. Sako’s background, his travels, and his knowledge of the film industry had many Hollywood directors and producers reach out to him for jobs. For decades, Sako advocated for Arab/Middle Eastern films with positive messaging.
“Hollywood films tend to portray Arabs and Middle Easterners as bad people and don’t even give them a name,” he explained. “Their characters in the credits are ‘Terrorist #1,’ ‘Terrorist #2,’ ‘Woman #1,’ ‘Man #2.’ Enough of that! It’s time we give them names in the films to show who we are, whether Christian, Muslim, Jew, or anyone else.”
One of the reasons he got involved with Pomegranate is that “It showed the good side of Arabs and Middle Easterners.” Another reason was that the film was being directed by a woman of Middle Eastern descent. (Again, yours truly.)
“I always had great respect for women, a deep respect which increased after the birth of my son,” he said, “I have a wife and two daughters in the medical field. I believe in Arab women, especially the Iraqis who carry a great load on their shoulders. So, when Weam called me about her film, I thought, she’s not only from the Arab community, but she’s from my blood. How can I not support her?”
Made by the community it represents, Pomegranate’s script was selected as a quarterfinalist by Francis Coppola’s Zoetrope. Buffalo 8 Productions (in Santa Monica, California) then partnered with me during the development stage. Later, one of Hollywood’s most successful independent producers, Scott Rosenfelt, known for box office hits such as Home Alone and Mystic Pizza, signed on as the film’s executive producer.
Sam understood the value of what we were doing and was incredibly supportive.
Pomegranate follows the life journey of Niran, a young Muslim woman coming of age in Metro Detroit after emigrating from Iraq. She lives in Sterling Heights, nicknamed “Little Baghdad,” for its large population of Chaldeans. Niran walks a fine line between ancestral norms and the freedoms of a new generation. Inspired by her idol Enheduanna of ancient Mesopotamia, the first writer in recorded history, she navigates societal challenges, fights against cultural stereotypes, and aims to make her voice heard by all those around her.
Through the magic of storytelling, we are shattering stereotypes and nurturing new ways of thinking. It’s a significant undertaking, especially for women who, in our society, tend to live in the shadows.
Sako, who’s working on his own feature film Sea of Chaldea, added, “I think it’s time for us to make our own films and show people who we are. We have the power. We have the knowledge. We know how to make films.”
For more information on Pomegranate, visit pomegranatemovie.com.
Clockwise from top left: Sam with Tom Hanks in 1985 on the set of the Man with One Red Shoe; on the set of Sheik in Dubai; Sam with Weam Namou on the set of Pomegranate. Photos courtesy Sam Sako