Waleed Zuaiter’s FlipNarrative Adapting Shannon Chakraborty’s Novel ‘The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi’ for TV (EXCLUSIVE)
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Production banner FlipNarrative, set up by Waleed Zuaiter — the BAFTA-nominated star of “Baghdad Central” and “Gangs of London” and Oscar-nominated producer of “Omar” — has optioned the rights to Shannon Chakraborty’s latest novel “The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi,” with plans to develop it into a multi-season series and gaming platform.
The book — the first in a trilogy being published by Harper Voyager — is a swashbuckling high seas adventure following a notorious Muslim pirate captain who has survived backstabbing rogues, vengeful merchant princes, several husbands and an actual demon before retiring to a life of piety. That is until she and her crew are forced into one last adventure — embarking on a mission across the Indian Ocean battling a supernatural world they never knew existed.
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“With ‘The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi,’ we are given a rare insight into the melting pot that is the 12th century Indian Ocean,” said Zuaiter, who founded FlipNarrative alongside his wife Joana Zuaiter, with the two later joined by development executive Shaun-Dean Thomas. “The array of cultures who traversed those waters; Arabs, Africans, Asians and Europeans all taking opportunities wherever possible to make their fortunes. None so more than Amina al-Sirafi, the anti-hero we never knew we needed.”
FlipNarrative was established to amplify underrepresented and historically misrepresented voices, with Zuaiter — an Arab-American whose 30 years in Hollywood includes credits in “House of Cards,” “London Has Fallen” and “Altered Carbon” — aiming to utilize its position between Hollywood and MENASA (the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia).
“I’m delighted to work with FlipNarrative on adapting ‘The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi,” said Chakraborty, whose “The Daevabad Trilogy” books became New York Times bestsellers and were nominated for several awards. “This story is desperately dear to my heart and from the very beginning of my conversations with Joana, Waleed and Shaun, their passion about the characters — about both Amina’s swashbuckling wiles and struggles with motherhood — resonated so clearly, as did their desire to use the story as a showcase for the region and celebrate the cultures and history that inspired it.”
Added Zuaiter: “Shannon has created a character in Amina that is so richly flawed that it’s impossible not to relate to her. Someone who went against the tide by refusing to accept the chains the world shackles women with; who seized an opportunity that would never usually be offered to her, and excelled to gain respect from her peers and fear from her enemies.”
FlipNarrative is represented by Echo Lake Entertainment and The Artist Partnership. Chakraborty is represented by Echo Lake Entertainment on behalf of Azantian Literary.
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