--PHOTO OPPORTUNITY—
MICHIGAN-MADE FILM “OCEAN OF PEARLS” PREMIERE, AUGUST 5 - BIRMINGHAM
The private Michigan premiere of OCEAN OF PEARLS will be held on Wednesday, August 5 at the Uptown Palladium Theatre in Birmingham (250 N. Old Woodward).
- 6:30 p.m. - Red carpet with the film’s star Omid Abthai from Fox’s “24”
- 7:00 p.m. - Remarks by Jim Burnstein, producer and Dr. Sarab Neelam, director, producer and local gastroenterologist – the first Sikh director of an American feature film.
- 7:30 p.m. - Viewing of the award-winning film
Pre-event interviews are available. Contact Tina Heaton, tina@revinity.com, 248.613.3898;
About OCEAN OF PEARLS
Amrit Singh is of two worlds, but belongs to neither. A turban-wearing Sikh, he has lived his life in North America out of sorts and out of place, cast adrift at an uneasy crossroads between East and West. But when he is offered a prestigious position as a transplant surgeon in a Detroit hospital, the young doctor sees it as an opportunity to start fresh. He struggles to be the man he believes he is and the person he wants to be. His ambitious pursuit of success; however, eventually leads to tragedy. It is only in defining his singular identity that he finds peace. This film is rated PG-13 by the MPAA. For more, visit www.oceanofpearls.com.
Film Release Dates
August 7 - Landmark’s Maple Art Theatre, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan; August 14 - AMC Forum and Emagine in Canton, Michigan; August 21 - Landmark’s Embarcadero Theatre in San Francisco; and September 11 - Landmark’s Century Centre Theatre in Chicago
About Dr. Sarab Neelam
Neelam’s first film is infused with autobiographical elements. Neelam lived the early years of his childhood in India where he fell in love with movies and became inspired by the contradictions of beauty and poverty. At the age of ten, Neelam and his family moved to Toronto, Canada, where he came face to face with obstacles created by being different. Neelam eventually became a medical doctor and was troubled early in his practice by the inequities of the American health care system. Deciding to fulfill a childhood dream, he started taking filmmaking classes with the over-riding goal to portray Sikhs fairly and fully on-screen. In the aftermath of 9/11, this became a moral imperative. Neelam has lived in Michigan for the past 25 years and currently resides in Troy with his wife and three children. He continues his practice as a gastroenterologist at William Beaumont-Troy and St. John Macomb Hospitals.
