This is the first post in a series revolving around Bilal’s Stand; check @SHEImagazine on Twitter for updates from Park City, Utah, where the Sundance Film Festival is being held until January 31, an exclusive interview with director Sultan Sharrief, and a review of the movie itself.

To read a description of the movie Bilal’s Stand is to read a fairy tale in itself, “The Little Film That Could.”  Production began back in 2006, and despite financing difficulties, location restrictions and other various obstacles, Michigan alumni Sultan Sharrief’s semi-autobiographical love letter to Detroit is now one of the most anticipated indie films competing at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival.

Directed by Michigan native and UM grad Sultan Sharrief, Bilal’s Stand is about an upright black Muslim teen who works at his family’s taxi stand in Detroit. “The Stand,” as they affectionately call it, has been the family’s social and financial hub for the past 60 years, and Bilal is in line to carry the torch. But Bilal, who burns the midnight oil to keep up both the family business and his grades, develops a secret life designed to enable him to attend the University of Michigan. When his two lives collide, Bilal is forced to decide between keeping The Stand alive – and living the only life he has ever known – or taking a shot at social mobility.

Based on a true story, Bilal’s Stand radiates warmth, humor, and originality. Sultan Sharrief’s debut feature is a freshly crafted film filled with heart and authenticity that transports audiences to a world rarely seen on-screen and heralds the arrival of its filmmaker as a new voice in American independent cinema.  Description from the Michigan Theater.

Bilal’s Stand will play Sunday, January 31 at 6PM at the Michigan Theater.  Tickets: $15 adults, $12 students/seniors/veterans, $10 Michigan Theater members. Advanced tickets are available at ticketweb.com.

Check out the trailer for Bilal’s Stand.