MEMO in conversation with: Amjad Alnour

Award-winning Sudanese filmmaker and Producer Amjad Alnour’s current show sees him talking to an alien friend about humans and life on earth, making him an ambassador for mankind.

Speaking to MEMO he said: “I always think that we, as humans, are interesting creatures. I wanted to make something that talks about us. Actually, it was [Al Jazeera] AJ’s idea to talk to aliens instead of talking [about] what we do about racism or marriage in the Middle East, whatever subject. If I was an ambassador for earth and I am talking to aliens who don’t know anything about human beings.”

“I feel lucky because every week I am in front of my audiences for no political reason …. I am talking with them in a poetic way.”

Having been raised in Saudi Arabia, where Al Jazeera has been banned since 2017, working at the station wasn’t welcomed by everyone. “Some of my friends from Saudi Arabia were very shocked and they were worried about me when I started to work with a Qatari news channel. But, now the relations between Qatar and Saudi Arabia are getting better.”

His determination is what allowed him to reach his current position and it is this that the youth should harness, he said. “If you want to be a successful media person you should always remember that the greatest pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do. Don’t give up to follow your dreams.”