My name is Omar Kamel, and I do all sorts of different things.
Here, I write.
I really want to address the phenomenon of people asking artists to work for free on commercial projects. You have to understand that not all artists can afford to work for free, and whereas it may be commendable to offer free work for non-profit projects or projects that are designed purely to benefit society, doing work for free on commercial projects is devastating to the industry and to less...
People underestimate the importance of stories, but I think that stories are the fabric of our minds. Stories are how stars become constellations, and how flesh becomes character. They’re the narrative that gives life to a universe otherwise governed by nothing but the laws of physics. They’re how we make sense of the world, and determine what kind of sense we make of it.
I want to tell you about The OA. You might not understand why I’d take the time to tell you about a TV show while reality itself seems to be falling apart, children are getting murdered in their homes, and politicians are doing their best to exploit your misery for their gains. But to quote the main character from the first episode, “pretend to trust me until you do.” With those lines, spoken by...
What you need to know before bringing a dog into your life:
Talk to them. Never hit them. Expressing disappointment when they do bad is punishment enough. Expressing happiness is reward enough. They will give you all the love in their hearts, and it’s infinite. They never live long enough, and you will be heartbroken.
Worth it.
Watching the finale episode of Season One of For All Mankind, and it really is a well-written show. Two particular moments stand out so far, and for almost opposite reasons – [SPOILERS] In the first, two astronauts stranded in a capsule face almost certain death, a male and a gay woman. He’s her superior officer at NASA and was the one who trained her. She’s been keeping her sexuality a...
Gabriel: Dadda, can you get me a paper towel?
Me: Didn’t you just tear one?
Gabriel: Yes, but it kept tearing wrong. I want you to tear me a perfect one.
Me: Why does it have to be perfect?
Gabriel: Because I like it perfect.
They’ve pummeled your dreams so far into the ground with their bloody fists that you’re willing to vote for an ass like Biden while you think Bernie is god’s gift to humanity, second only to Jesus fucking Christ himself. They’ve shoved you so far into the corner that you can’t see that Bernie is a sellout. He supported Obama’s drone program, had no issues with an extrajudicial kill-list, and was...
I just found out that David Graeber died yesterday. He was the smartest guy I’ve ever had the honor to know. We met on Twitter during the revolution after I’d read his Fragments of An Anarchist Anthropology. I used him as a sounding board whenever I thought my head was going too far. He was kind, always communicative, took the time to read the things I wrote, and we were always on the same...
I just found out that Mahmoud Reda passed away today. I didn’t know him well but met him while shooting a documentary on his work with Keti Sharif.
He was a wonderfully sweet man, and he was definitely a cultural force in Egypt, his work with the fantastic Farid’s Fahmy did much to keep Egyptian folkloric dance alive, and evolve it along the way.
Not everybody succeeds at what they try to do, but many keep trying. Some keep trying the same thing until they succeed, and others keep trying different things, like they’re throwing spaghetti at the wall, hoping some of it will stick. Often, nothing does. These people meander through life, trying one thing after another, one business idea after another, struggling to figure out what they’re...