About

MUSTAFA DAVIS ::: Filmmaker / Photographer / Creative Director

I was born and raised in the Bay Area in Northern California. After attending college where I studied English and Photojournalism, I traversed overseas in search of ecstatic truth in art and independent stories to tell. Armed with my camera and a notepad I set out to find those obscure stories that I felt needed a voice. After nearly seven years of travel through Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, I ended up in Yemen where I met acclaimed German documentary filmmaker Stefan Tolz who was shooting his film “Adobe Towns – Shibam, Manhattan of the Desert.” Stefan took a liking to me and trained me in the art of documentary filmmaking.

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There, I studied with renowned German cinematographer Sorin Dragoi (Winner of 2004 German Cinematography Award) and further developed my deep love for the camera. In 2003, I returned to the USA and continued my studies in the art of filmmaking at the New York Film Academy (Universal Studios – Hollywood, CA) and graduated at the top of my class with my  thesis film “The Champ.”

I co-founded the media production company Guidance Media and  also created my own production company Grazroots Films.  I relocated to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates and  established the Media Division of the Tabah Foundation. I also established the production company Tabah Films (which focuses on feature films and documentaries) as well as Tabah TV (a television production company). There I held the executive positions of Media Division Director, Film Producer/Director and Media Advisor at the Tabah Foundation.

I left the Tabah Foundation in 2008 and relocated to Hollywood, California and founded the award winning production company (Cinemotion Media). Cinemotion Media produces feature documentary films (including the award winning films Common Ground, Deen Tight and The Warm Heart of Africa) as well as music videos, commercials, educational films, corporate videos, and short films. Cinemotion Media provides film and photography services as well as official media consulting to several companies and non-profit organizations globally.

My work has been showcased internationally on MTV, PBS, iTV, Rotana, Al Risala, Abu Dhabi TV, Dubai TV, Channel 1 Yemen TV, IQRA, TV Sudan, MBC, Al Aqariyya, KBC, Dream, and at international film festivals, screenings and exhibitions. Cinemotion Media incorporates the expertise and consultation of acclaimed award winning and four time Oscar nominated producer Robert Richter (Woman Rebel, The Last Atomic Bomb, In Our Hands), award winning editor Ruth Schell (A Life Apart, A Letter Without Words, The Last Ghost of War)  and many other professional filmmakers and photographers worldwide.

I also founded Mustafa Davis Inc which is the production company that produces the majority of my fine art photography.

Cinemotion Media and Mustafa Davis Inc, have offices in the San Francisco Bay Area, California and Santa Monica, CA.

FILMOGRAPHY:

Production Assistant

  • Adobe Towns, Manhattan of the Desert (2003/04), 45/52 min, col., Digi Beta; Documentary Production: Filmquadrat with SWR/Arte

Cinematographer

  • The Domino Effect (2006) 10 min, B&W Super 16mm
  • Itʼs My Time (2006) 8 min B&W Super 16mm
  • Goodbye Blue Sky (2006) 3 min Col. 16mm
  • Much Better (2006) 5 min B&W 16mm
  • Sugarhigh (2006) 18 min Color HD
  • Muslim Boarders (2006) 20min Color Digital SD

Director / Producer

  • Freedom (2004) 22min Color Digital SD (Documentary)
  • The Thousand Year Journey (2005) 21min Color Digital SD (Documentary)
  • Bridging the Gap (2006) 18 min Color Digital SD (Documentary)
  • Rush (2006) 3 min Color 35mm Panavision
  • All Cried Out (2006) 3min Mise En Scene B&W Super 16mm
  • The Showdown (2006) 4 min B&W Super 16mm
  • The Champ (2006) 10 min Color HD
  • Common Ground (2007) 52 min Color HD (Documentary)
  • Mahabba Awards (2007) 63 min Color HD (TV Documentary)
  • Deen Tight (2009) 74 min Color HD (Theatrical Documentary)
  • The Warm Heart of Africa (2009) 56:40 Color HD (Theatrical Documentary)
  • Meccan Openings (2010) feature documentary (Color HD) – in production w/ Amir Sulaiman
  • In The Name of God (2010) feature documentary (Color HD) – in production with Habib Ali al Jifri
  • Playing For Keeps (2011) feature documentary (Color HD) – pre production

MUSIC VIDEOS:

  • Amerikan Me (2005) M-Team, Remarkable Current Records – (Editor)
  • Things Go Down (2007) Internal (aka Maintain), Tauheed Productions – (Director / Producer)
  • There is a Devil (2008) Tyson, Remarkable Current Records – (Director / Producer)
  • Dunya (2009) Amir Sulaiman, Cornerstore Folklore / Cinemotion Media – MTV (Director / Producer)
  • Moonlit Madness (2009) Baraka Blue, Remarkable Current Records (Director / Producer) – in production
  • Take my Hand (2009) Nader Khan, Cinemotion Media (Director / Producer) – in production

PHOTOGRAPHY PROJECTS:

  • District Mission (2011) A photo book about the gentrification of San Francisco’s Mission District
  • (2011) A collection of photos taken around the world with the prose of Poet Amir Sulaiman
  • “The Ecstatic Truth” Mustafa Davis Photography (2012) a coffee table photo book showcasing the work of Mustafa Davis