Iranian Entertainment & Culture

This clip features parts of the 13th episode of the exciting new PBS series "Invitation To World Literature - 1001 Nights". Select clips show producers Aly Jetha and Shabnam Rezaei as they talk about the famous book of 1001 Nights and how it has influenced their lives and why they decided to produce the new animated cartoon series "1001 Nights" for children.

Having come from Iran and growing up with the tales, Shabnam Rezaei discusses the original 1001 Nights framing story about King Shahryar and the famous story teller Shahrzad (Scheherzade). They discuss other cartoons that have used the literature as a source of inspiration and their intentions with the new adaption of this animated comedy series which will be airing on stations such as CBC, Disney, and ORF Austria among others. They also are doing 1001 Nights comic books for children. Other interpretations of the Arabian Nights or Nights Tales are presented such as Rimsky-Korsakov's famous composed music piece by the same name.
Invitation to World Literature includes other tales such as Gilgamesh, The Odyssey, The Bhagavad Gita, The Tale of Genji, The Bacchae and more.
Other cast members include Philip Glass, Yusef Komunyakaa, Mary Zimmerman, Tim Blake-Nelson, Marin Alsop, Azar Nafisi and David Damrosch.
Explore world culture and story-telling like never before. Great epics, plays, poetry, and other literary texts have made their way around the world through time and translation, and are still captivating audiences today. This multimedia resource invites viewers to appreciate and most importantly read these ancient and modern works. The 13 texts are introduced on video by a wide-ranging cast including scholars, translators, artists, and writers. Excerpts of the texts are found on an extensive Web site along with background material and reading support; an interactive timeline and a feature on translation; and resources for teaching and further study.
Produced By Seftel Productions. Coming to PBS stations and worldwide near you in 2011.
For more on the animated 1001 Nights series from Big Bad Boo and producers Aly Jetha and Shabnam Rezaei, please visit www.bigbadboo.ca
Aly Jetha and Shabnam Rezaei also produced the animated TV series Mixed Nutz as well as Babak & Friends - A First Norooz.
1001 Nights Comic books are on sale at www.oznoz.com.