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A strong believer in New Media
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By
Mona Ahmed Al-Hammoudi
Published on
September 01, 2011
Type:
Article | |
Dr Sulaiman Al Hattlan was invited to give a guest lecture to the Young Media Leaders. Following a very interesting and animated discussion, Mona Ahmed Al Hammoudi from UAE University had the opportunity to interview Dr Al Hattlan.
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| A new type of superhero | | | By Sara Mohamed Saif Al Nadabi
Published on
September 03, 2011
Sara al Nadabi interviews Dr Naif Al-Mutawa, the creator of THE99 - the first group of comic superheroes born of an Islamic archetype. | | |  Dr Naif speaks at Al Mamoura Auditorium. Photo courtesy of ADMAF
Dr Naif Al-Mutawa is a brilliant presence, a knowledgeable and funny personality, a famous person who still knows how to be humble, a real communicator, and able to fully captivate his audience. It is this particular talent that enabled him - a clinical psychologist - to become a creator of comics, and to manage to address the human spirit at all ages with the simplest way of communication and expression: comics. His target group is mainly children and young adults who love reading graphic novels and follow superheroes' adventures. And the way Dr Naif manages to connect with them is through the creation of THE99, the first group of comic superheroes born of an Islamic archetype.
The YML students met Dr Naif during a lecture given at the Al Mamoura Auditorium in February 2011 on 'Repositioning Islam through THE99'. At the end of a very interesting and animated night, during which the audience had a chance to watch an exclusive preview of the new animation film based on THE99, Sara Mohamed Saif Al Nadabi from HCT Women, had the opportunity to interview Dr Naif.
- President Barack Obama praised you and THE99 as perhaps the most innovative of the thousands of new entrepreneurs viewed by his Presidential Summit on Entrepreneurship. How did you feel at that particular moment?
I can't really describe the way I felt at the time... I was so pleased to be recognised in such a way, by the president of one of the most important countries in the world. But what I actually remember from that particular moment is shock... I was so happy to receive this honour that I forgot to stand up from my chair when President Barack Obama called out my name... I sat still, amazed, in my chair, as if I was in a dream... It was one of the most important moment of my life.
- What is the effect of your studies in psychology on writing THE99 comics?
Studying psychology had a great effect on my writing and the creation of my characters. Through psychology, I was able to create internal conflicts, external conflicts and allow the characters to form relationships that make the story flow.
- The first publication of THE99 magazine was in 2006, and soon the animated film THE99 will be shown in cinemas. Now that you already have THE99 as a print magazine and as a movie – are you considering creating a computer game based on THE99?
I think it’s a wonderful idea. We have already started discussions and negotiations for ‘translating’ THE99 into a computer game. We hope to achieve this in the near future, as I have no doubt that the game will be very popular, and not just with the young generation. Creating a game based on THE99 would allow more children to benefit from the story.
- Jabbar, Noora, Darr – these are some of the names that you have chosen for your characters. Do you think these names will draw children's attention – both from the Arab world and the Western one – bearing in mind that kids nowadays grow up with very famous superheroes such as Superman, Spiderman or Batman?
The names of my characters are inspired by the 99 attributes of Allah. But what makes a character interesting more than the name is the content itself. What is the relevance of a name if the story is not meaningful enough and does not touch the reader’s heart?
- What sort of difficulties did you face with THE99 project?
There is no success without obstacles. For my part, I faced many... There were times when I wondered if I would succeed. I had quite a few issues as well with raising the capital needed to finance the comics. I think with any project, one must consider both aspects – success and failure. It scared me to think about both possibilities but I continued to move forward.
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