Exclusive: Leila Abu-saada Joins CAAM as Building Bridges Documentary Fund Manager

The Center for Asian American Media (CAAM) announced today that documentary filmmaker and journalist Leila Abu-saada has been tapped to manage the Building Bridges Documentary Fund. Applications for the first year of the fund, which is supported by the Doris Duke Foundation’s Building Bridges program and funds Muslim documentary stories in the U.S., were open earlier this year. Selected projects will be announced later this fall.

Abu-saada started her career as a news producer and deputy news editor for Al Jazeera English in Doha, Qatar. Since then, she’s spent over a decade traversing the premium, journalistic, and indie documentary spaces developing, producing, and directing. Aside from stints mostly in development and scripting for documentary stalwarts XTR, Chicken & Egg, Zero Point Zero, and more, Abu-saada has also received an HBO/Gotham New True Stories grant and a Points North Institute North Star fellowship.

In a prepared statement, Abu-saada outlined her hopes for the fund: “We are looking forward to being an integral agent of change in bolstering U.S. Muslim films that can also bring in a diversity of audiences, and for U.S. Muslims to recognize themselves in the myriad of stories we'll support. I hope this fund provides confidence to filmmakers that CAAM is prioritizing the support of the U.S. Muslim community in film.”

CAAM is one of the oldest non-profits presenting Asian American stories and is best known for its flagship eponymous film festival and public broadcast documentary funding. “CAAM is excited to build upon our legacy of uplifting stories from Muslim communities in the United States,” said CAAM’s Executive Director Stephen Gong. “With Leila joining our team, we are expanding our capacity to support films centering on U.S. Muslim experiences, illuminating Asian American as well as other communities.”

As Documentary has previously covered, the mission of the Doris Duke Foundation (DDF) is to build a more creative, equitable and sustainable future by investing in artists and the performing arts, environmental conservation, medical research, child well-being and greater mutual understanding among diverse communities. Through the Building Bridges Program, the DDF works to elevate U.S. Muslim stories with the goal of increasing mutual understanding and well-being among diverse populations for the benefit of building stronger, inclusive communities.