Leading up to the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, Parvez Sharma and his film A Sinner in Mecca have experienced a number of online threats due to the film’s touchy subject matter: the struggles which Sharma faces as a gay Muslim. The film is due to have its world premiere at the festival in Toronto on Wednesday 29 April and though no threats have been directed towards the festival itself, a security detail has been arranged for the filmmaker as a precautionary measure.
A Sinner in Mecca follows Sharma, who is openly homosexual and deeply religious, on his journey to Mecca where he hopes to find answers to his personal struggles with faith and sexuality. For Muslims, homosexuality is considered a crime and is punishable by death.
“It is a natural instinct as a filmmaker to document the most important journey I would ever take in my life,’ said Sharma, who explained that making the film was a substantial risk. Sharma added that he would not miss the screening and that he was proud of the film.
Watch the trailer for A Sinner in Mecca.
