Canadian director to film "Star Wars"

Lucasfilm Ltd., the Star Wars company, has announced a new series of films. This time an eminent Canadian director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy will take the director's chair.

Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy was born in Pakistan and moved to Canada in 2004. Her films are imbued with a fight for justice and the struggle for women's rights. Over the course of her career, she has twice received an Oscar Academy Award for her two short documentaries.

Now Lucasfilm Ltd. led by Kathleen Kennedy has chosen Sharmeen to direct the first film of the new trilogy. The other two directors announced at this Saturday's Star Wars tribute in London are James Mangold, who previously directed Logan and Ford vs. Ferrari, and Dave Filoni, a screenwriter of the last five Star Wars movies.

Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy will work with the head of Lucasfilm Ltd. Kathleen Kennedy. Today she is one of the most successful producers whose films have grossed more than USD 7 billion at the box office.

Kathleen Kennedy has produced almost all of Steven Spielberg's projects, including the Indiana Jones series, Schindler's List, and Saving Private Ryan. She was also involved in the production of Back to the Future, directed by Forrest Gump director Robert Zemeckis. She has worked with the Coen Brothers (The True Grit) and Clint Eastwood (The Bridges of Madison County).

Now Sharmeen's innovation and keen eye, along with Kathleen Kennedy's professional expertise, will set a new bar in filmmaking and will give Canadian filmmakers a chance to demonstrate their potential. Recently we wrote about their success at the Academy Awards.